


At the Corner of 81st and Broadway

by Fyliwion



Category: Magic Kaito, 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed
Genre: Aoko is a Detective, BAMF Aoko, Caper Fic, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Future Fic, Heist, New York City, Romance, Sex, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Smut, Strong Language, Ten Years Later, Undercover, nypd, romcom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-08
Updated: 2016-09-13
Packaged: 2018-07-13 01:41:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 27,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7133375
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fyliwion/pseuds/Fyliwion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fifteen years after leaving Japan, Aoko Nakamori is a rising star in the white collar division of the NYPD. </p><p>Then Kaitou KID comes to town.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Act I

Grey.

Early spring that hadn't quite given up to winter, and the most relentless part of the year had descended upon the city.

She moved to New York when autumn was arriving and the bustle was a softer, quieter rush than that of Tokyo. Nearly fifteen years later she'd become a part of it, letting herself relinquish what she had been and turn into someone new. Someone who loathed the dank spring, and lived for bright warm summers.

Fifteen years. Some days she forgot she'd ever come from another place at all.

But that abysmal change from winter to spring made her miss home. Brought back memories of festivals and spring shoots and trips to the mountains. It wasn't the same, and even after a decade she felt conspicuous leaving the throng of the city for the rural countryside just outside the city’s borders.

Sometimes she thought of hopping a plane for home, but travel was always hell when she couldn't be certain a blizzard wouldn't trap her an extra week, and the white collar division of the NYPD wasn't that forgiving.

And some things you could never escape.

Sitting in the 34th story of the office, she looked out at the wet mixture plastering itself against the glass.

"No." She told her chief flatly. "You know as much that I'm compromised. I can consult but you can't send me into this ." She felt her fist tighten at the idea. They wouldn't dare.

"Nakamori you are being ridiculous . This is the first time 1412 has held a heist in the Metropolitan area in over twenty years, and quite likely the first time this specific incarnation of him has. You have more information-"

“Information as the daughter of of the inspector charged with capturing him in Japan, and all of it fifteen years out of date,” she angrily snapped back at him. “Second-hand information, and a bit of first if you account for a high schooler running amok on a crime scene. Even if I could remember what he looked like, or try to assist pinpointing him in a crowd, he will have changed drastically in the last decade. On top of that, I assure you I've done all I can to _not_ think about KID during that time.”

The Chief crossed his arms. “Nakamori you're one of our best detectives.”

“Yes. I detect. I observe. I go in with guns blazing and get you whatever culprit you're looking for, but this isn't a normal crime. This isn't a Matisse that went missing from a frame, or tracking down a lost diamond. You know where it is, you know who's taking it, and frankly it's not my department.”

His hand slammed against the desk just as she was ready to stand up and walk out.

“Wrong.”

You could cut the silence with a knife. There was the soft sound of ice crystals against the pane, and a faint hint of wind through windows not meant to open. For a reckless moment she wondered what it would be like to simply have the ability to push through and fly.

Soaring on a pair of white wings over the city.

Damn.

“Call up Saguru Hakuba if you like. He's with Interpol, and I'm certain he'd be happy to come over and take care of KID for you.” The sleet  outside had turned to a near flurry, and might have been pretty if she'd been warm and in her apartment with a book. She should have taken the day off, then someone else could deal with this mess.

“We have contacted Interpol, obviously, and I am well aware the FBI has their nose in this as well. All well and good, but that doesn't change the fact this is _our_ city and the Mayor has personally-”

She snorted and leaned back in the chair, “Oh, personally did he? What next? Bratton hanging around to tell me what's a forgery or not?”

"You are our best chance Nakamori. We can't risk insulting both the Turkish and Greek embassies with this, which is what will happen if the heist is successful. The show is the premiere event for the Met this season, and every big name in the city will be coming for the unveiling of the new collection. With a matched collection from Istanbul, Athens, and Cyprus in an act of ‘cordiality amongst the arts,’ the political implications are painfully obvious . Some of these gems haven't been shown since they were raided over two hundred year ago."

Like it would matter. She went into white collar crime for a reason, but chose New York over Japan to avoid just this. "I would start coming up with contingency plans if I were you"

"Nakamori!"

She wanted to punch the desk, grab the files, and throw them in her Chief's face. Or maybe storm out and catch a plane anywhere that the words KID and 1412 had never been uttered.

Her eyes flickered to the expression on his face before glancing back out the window. She would jump through every hoop and ladder in a normal situation, but this was different. This was something best left buried, and her own ties to KID too convoluted to make her eager to ever take it up again.

“Listen, you want to know about KID?” She hardened her expression as she turned to face the Chief again, “He's going to steal the gems. He might already have the damn gems for that matter. The only real consolation is that he always returns them. And if, for some reason, this time he doesn't? He'll likely replace it with something equally of value that is also probably indistinguishable from the first.”

“That's not acceptable.”

She could tell he wanted a cigarette and nearly told him to light one. She'd spent years watching her father smoke, and she knew very well the Chief would once he thought the other detectives had left for the day.

“Maybe, but KID always gets his gems. If there was one thing I’ve learned, it's that he will get it one way or another. The bigger problem isn't KID at all. KID is predictable, and furthermore usually tries to minimize damage and injury. You have the the files-”

“Nakamori-”

“Obviously it doesn't always happen that way, but it doesn't change the fact that it's true. KID isn't the problem at his heists, but whoever is _chasing_ KID is. You've read about it, even if most of it is classified, and trust me, it was the first thing I looked into when I joined here.”

The information had been useless; she'd found out more between her father's files and Hakuba. Most of the information she had gleamed was classified once it reached anything of use. Classified and sectioned off by the Federal Bureau. She had a tracker when new data was entered, but usually the files always went straight to the FBI or, occasionally, the CIA. In the last few years the red tape had gotten thicker as her curiosity grew. She'd managed to hack in once, but the data was so well censured she barely gathered anything more than the few things she'd already borrowed from Hakuba.

Frankly, she had been certain when KID inevitably had a heist in the city she'd be taken off due to lack of clearance. The last few years she'd taken comfort in the knowledge her devision wouldn't likely be allowed on the grounds, and she could sit and have a smoke on her car outside while she watched the building blow.

But she had forgotten how territorial her boss could be.

Maybe next time she'd send a note to Chikage-san so she could make sure she was out of the country in time. Somewhere without wifi or cell reception to insure there would be no calling her back in.

The chief was still talking, senselessly; by God the man could be thick headed. “-Regardless, we can handle a group of thugs.”

“Yes, but do you really want to evacuate half of the upper east side due to a possible terrorist attack?”

“Surely you're-”

She scowled and grabbed her iPad off his desk to open up the files. Fine. _Fine._ t least she'd kept some of her research.

“Look,” she pushed it forward and let the thumbnails pop up: over a hundred different headlines saved and categorized automatically by her program. “In the past five years alone the danger associated with KID heists has magnified ten fold. There have always been incidents, but this is extreme. They began just as I was leaving Japan, and it's only gotten worse.”

She could see the set look on his face, the disbelief, and rolled her eyes, “Sir, it isn't KID behind _this._ I have more reasons than most to hate him, but his motive is to get in, get out, and put on a show while doing it. This is a disregard for human life that KID doesn't share. The two incidents I was privy to were a well formed organization that seems to have some sort of vendetta against him. They were dangerous, and they had no qualms with high profile attacks. You might have access to their files, but everything I have looked into is sectioned off.”

If only her seventeen year old self could hear her now.

He sighed, flipping through the slideshow, “I'm well aware of the precautions needed. The FBI and Interpol will have a presence on site, and yes, I have been rather _thoroughly_ vetted over the situation concerning the incidents surrounding the heists. That, however, is not our department. Homeland security, the Bureau, Quantico...they can deal with a possible terrorist threat. All I care about is making sure the Arabs don't lose their damn gem.”

“Sir,” she said doing her best not to throw a stapler across a room. Preferably the stapler, her grip on her iPad was becoming precarious.

“Nakamori, I don't give a damn if you know him, love him, hate him, or fucked him. All I want is for you to do the job I hired you for. You're one of the best, you have been since you left the Academy, and that was why we put in for your visa to stay on in the first place. After seven years? I dare say you are, quite frankly, a top operative, and we've had more success from you than I ask most of the rest of my staff in a year. You've seen this 1412 work first hand, and I know you don't want on the case, but you'll do your job just like you have for every other unwanted case that comes our way. Am I clear?”

Her hands fisted in her skirt, “Crystal. Sir.”

“Thank you,” he met her eyes. “Now. Tell me how to go about setting up a trap for a bastard arrogant enough to announce a fucking heist.”

 

* * *

 

_Dangerous._

_The heists had been that since the beginning, but now_ They'd _taken it to a new level. Twice he’d had to defuse bombs discovered at heists, and once by the police. Every night he'd walked away with his cloak full of gunshots, and a near miss to his person. Now they were  turning that fire on civilians._

_It was too late to go back, and too soon to end it._

_His fingers ran over the university pamphlets._

_"Kaito?"_

_Aoko's voice jarred him from his revere. There was no hope for it, not that he'd intended to go anyway. For a short time he had considered it, for the sake of the degree, but four more years of school was no longer a luxury to be had. He might have the grades, even with his current attendance issues but-_

_There were other ways to learn showman tricks, and apprenticeships would take him further than any school in Japan could offer. Abroad he would be able to expand his search, and there were programs and conservatories that catered to performers._

_It also provided a way to defuse a volatile situation at home._

_"Come on Kaito, you must have some thought," she said, prodding him. "Of course with your attendance record I would be surprised if anyone took you at all," she drawled._

_"Mmm, what's the point?" He yawned and pointed to the book as it burst into confetti. “It's not like I'd ever take a desk job anyway, and I'm hardly going to go to a program focusing on_ Kabuki _or_ Noh”

 _Aoko giggled at that. “Mahh... Kaito I think you'd be good at_ Kabuki _, if you could slow down for more than five minutes. You look enough like an_ oni _.”_

 _He leaned back throwing his hand over his heart, “_ Ojousan _you wound me!”_

“ _Idiot.”_

_He gave Aoko a long look, “Where are you looking? Tokyo U?”_

_She paused, not meeting his eyes, “I don't know....”_

“ _Come one Aoko,” he wheedled, “You must have some idea. You know what I want to do.” He prodded her side, eliciting an annoyed look._

“ _It's obvious isn't it? I want to catch KID,” she said scowling. Seeing Kaito's expression she rolled her eyes, “Or at least something like it. Like Dad, but... maybe something else, yeah? Like the FBI or CIA or Interpol.”_

_He chuckled, “You've been reading too much manga, Ao-chan.”_

_She crossed her arms with a feeling of irritation. “Well how is that any sillier than becoming a magician? I've been raised with the force for forever, and I know I don't just want to become another officer-- even if I could with Dad.”_

“ _True.”_

“ _Except I_ don't _want Dad to interfere, which he might. Or at least it probably would come up eventually-” she said biting her lip. “Even if he didn't try, so.... I don't know.”_

_Which would solve another problem Kaito had, or rather Kaito and Inspector Nakamori had._

_How to keep Aoko safe._

_He paused looking at her thoughtfully, “What if_ you _studied abroad?”_

“ _What?”_

_Her expression was incredulous, and it was obvious it hadn't gone through her mind. True, it would kill Kaito and the Inspector, but it would mean she was away from the messes that followed after KID nowadays. If Kaito did leave, he could just make sure to go nowhere near where she decided to study, and it would give him at least four, if not more years with her away. He could just take care not to do any heists while she visiting home- or make sure he was travelling when she did._

“ _It makes sense, yeah? You even listed other organizations- most which are in America. They have some of the best law enforcement training anywhere. You could be sure that there would be no interference from your Dad, and you could study different methods so when you did come back to catch KID you could bring something new to the table.”_

_He was proud of the idea, and how calm his voice remained as he chirped it off. He'd considered ways to get her out of Tokyo, but this would be even better._

“ _But-” she worried her bottom lip, causing Kaito to fight the distraction it caused. “But it's so far!”_

“ _Yeah, but that's what college is about right? Growing up or something like that? See! This is why I'm not going.” He flopped back into the chair and tossed a ball from his sleeve into the air in a simple juggling pattern._

“ _Kaito, you're too smart not to!”_

“ _I'm too smart to do so. That's four years I can be working in the business, and trust me, every minute counts with these things.”_

_She humphed, but he could see her working over the thought in her mind. “He's an international criminal, Aoko. Think of the connections you could bring in.”_

_Her eyes leveled on Kaito with a suspicious gaze. “I thought you were KID's biggest fan.”_

_He rubbed the back of his neck. Perhaps too much pushing then. “Yeah, but I'm yours too.”_

_The blush that ran across her cheeks was a pale rose, and it caused him to smile as he watched her brush back an errant strand of hair._

“ _Idiot.”_

“ _Mmmhm. Still.... think on it, yeah? Plus, if I end up studying abroad maybe we'll see each other more, right?”_

_Unless he had any say about it._

_Then he wouldn't see her at all, no matter the consequences._

 

* * *

 

“As far as museums go, it has its charms.”

Hakuba looked up at the impassive Joan of Arc staring down above him before moving on. “I still am partial to London’s, but for a nation only a little over 200 years old, you must give them credit. I must say I also enjoy their separate curation processes. There's something about focusing on groups or types rather than time, allowing a person to expand outside their usual purveyances.”

“I suppose.” She was fond of it herself. They stepped down the hall and down the stairs towards the hall of statues, her eyes flickering out to the grey outdoors and the wind beating itself against the glass. “Are you certain you won't stay for the heist?”

Hakuba shook his head. “As much as I would like, I do have another commitment. The current case I am on is too close to finally being closed. If I were to leave now I will have wasted the past ten months, and just as we're closing in. Trust me, I would be here if there was any other way.”

She huffed and stopped to look at a display of fans and boxes in the case they were passing. Small figures of smiling women and men danced and bowed across the paintings. At one time she might have found it romantic, now she just felt a sense of bittersweetness. “I can't imagine two extra days would kill you.”

“In this case it might.” She could feel his eyes studying the back of her head, and she wanted to punch the Interpol agent in the stomach. “I admit, I had considered. I'm rather shocked he's doing a heist here at all, but my supervisor wouldn't hear of it with this other case so close to the end.”

“Mmmm,” she turned back to walk forward.

They kept that way, side by side in companionable silence until they reached the statues. She looked up at Michael defeating the dragon, “Did he reach out to you?”

The silence answered her question.

“Did he at least say why?” She asked finally. “You must have discussed _this._ ” She raised her arms around her motioning to the museum, and towards the signs for the new exhibition hall. “Fifteen years, and the only time he was even on the eastern seaboard was the one trip I was firmly in Japan and still in college. He's had heists all over the world, but anyone would notice he's visibly kept himself away from this city. It's fine now, but I couldn't have gotten into his heists regardless when I was still in school. Of course my Chief won't listen to anything other than I take charge of the whole endeavour.”

“You always knew it was a possibility.”

“Yes but why _now_!?” She hadn't realized she shouted until she heard the reverberation around her, and several heads turned to stare at the two of them. Her cheeks darkened and Hakuba waved a hand to send the security away that had approached them.

“Aoko,” he said with a sigh, “you know I have my disagreements with him, but I suspect in light of recent events there must be a distinct possibility these are whatever he has been looking for. You know it as well, and once they leave they will be going back under lock and key to their respective owners.”

“Yes, obvious” she said with a scowl. “I just-”

She was surprised when she felt the detective's hand enclose hers,“I know Aoko.”

The grey mist was filling her vision. She couldn't see for the rain outside the windows, her mind thousands of miles away and clouded beyond the crowds and exhibitions.

“Why didn't he call?” She hated how her voice cracked. “Why didn't he warn me? Why didn't he-”

“Aoko, you know the answer to that.”

She pulled away, her eyes drawn to a nearby statue. Cupid and Psyche. She'd seen it a thousand times before and stood there watching it. The angel holding a woman in his grasp, the two of them falling to earth. Cold marble, adoration but with fear on both their faces.

A shiver ran down her spine.

“I miss him, Saguru.”

The detective's expression was odd. For a moment, a fleeting suspicion ran through her mind at the way his eyes flickered from the statue and her.

Something just behind his eyes.

“Be careful Aoko, and remember there are other people who care about you as well.”

She turned away from the tableau.

But did _he?_

“I know.”  
  


* * *

 

 

_The heist wasn't suppose to be a dangerous one. Indeed, it was so absurd Hakuba had taken the opportunity to fly back home rather than attend, although he'd been given the choice._

_The gem was part of some children's exhibit, and the event it was to be stolen during profited a charity that was funded in large part by the Suzuki family. Kaito knew that his note had simply influxed the attendance, and the gala had become part of the_ must-go-to _event for every moderately wealthy philanthropist in their district of Japan._

_Aoko was even planning to go, even after Kaito threw his excuses her way and with Hakuba on a plane to London. In Kaito's case, he'd gone to the extremes of having his mother give him a yelling match in Aoko's presence. He felt it might help make up for his absence, especially when he might have tried to juggle both if he thought there was a chance in hell of it working._

_Almost._

_He would have rather been at the heist, escorting her around and breaking apart the a-list crowd in attendance. Kaito missed those chances, missed just enjoying her company at functions neither of them had a right to be at._

_Instead it ended up giving Aoko an opportunity to stay close to the jewel and the main contention of the force._

_Kaito watched her beneath his disguise, through the corner of his eye. While he wasn't fond of her being in the center of the fire, it meant she was more likely to escape if something went wrong. It was what helped send up red flags when she disappeared and then later caught sight of her heading down an empty hallway across the room._

_Bathroom. He was about to turn and let her go when he saw her looking at a man in the shadows; a man in a dark suit talking low on a phone- and packing a gun._

_It wasn't immediately obvious. It wouldn’t have been noticeable at all had he not patted his chest absently as he murmured something Kaito couldn't quite hear. He hadn't seen her, but there was nowhere for her to hide that he wouldn't see once he left. But Aoko managed to surprise him, enough that it kept Kaito frozen in the corner rather than calling off the heist and getting Aoko out of there. She continued on her way to the bathroom with her phone in her hand and making a loud enough clatter so he saw her. She seemed nearly drunk rather than tipsy, although Kaito knew neither was precisely true. There was no point drawing him out herself, not if he had a gun, and she needed to be able to leave and alert her father of the situation._

_He’d do it himself, if he wasn’t so worried at her getting out alive._

_He watched the man leave, as Aoko took her time inside. Kaito traced the man’s exit, taking note and considering what it would mean for later, but hoping Aoko managed to get a message in the meanwhile._

_Kaito wanted to hit something, and was cursing profusely under his breath. Rule number one: Aoko was not to get involved. Obviously she knew their were other men after KID, men who wanted to kill him, but it was different if she'd seen the men packing guns._

_Guns at an event for children._

_The gem wasn't even worth that much. It was more a bauble, some named item made famous by a children's book, and worth very little in the market. It was very unlikely to be Pandora at all, and yet the group was becoming brash enough to interfere even here._

_It didn't matter. He had a heist to run, and in another five minutes he'd be running late. Reluctantly he left Aoko to set into motion his tricks, hoping that his backup plans would keep anyone from being hurt._

_However he hadn't planned for  the explosions._

_He'd gotten the gem, but he'd barely unveiled himself when the first blast came._

_The second sent the walls crumbling, and screams echoing through the ballrooms as walls fell. The halls had rearranged themselves, and it was then that he saw Aoko step into the main hall-- right where she could no longer reach the side her father was on even if she wanted to, and the other officers too busy gathering and evacuating the children._

_He'd managed to hide and secured a vantage point to try and see if there would be any more attacks, but it also gave him a full view of her face. He watched as she considered her exit. She wasn't trapped, and Kaito knew she could go back the way she came, which was devoid of smoke unlike the other exits but-_

_Kaito let himself fall to the ground behind her just as she turned._

_The pink gem glowed in his hand like a type of pale cotton candy. It might have been made from spun sugar, the way that it glistened with gossamer threads. It seemed impossibly small, and completely ignored as she met his eyes in confusion. He tried not to let the horror show on his face, trying a smile instead, and managed to get out “Nakamori-chan we-”_

_Then the gunshots started._

_His eyes were now on her as she stood there in pale lavender, covered in a thick layer of dust. He could see in her eyes staring back at him, that she knew that whatever was happening had nothing to do with the thief and everything to do with the man in black she had seen less than half hour before._

_She said something and it was lost in the chaos. His head was spinning, still trying to take in being so close to Aoko when the world was falling to hell around them at_ his _heist. A thousand things more important than being arrested._

“ _Nakamori-chan, you need to get out of here!” He forced his words to carry over the screams, and when she didn't move, his hand reached out to tighten around her wrist and pull her out of the way just as one of the columns fell where they had stood a moment before._

_Her breath came quick, and he was forced to drag her along behind him, through the ruins and down the open hall. He felt her struggle against him and finally he turned, pushing her against the wall more roughly than he meant to, “Nakamori-chan, you may hate me all you like later. Arrest me for all I care, but right now I need to get you out of here and I am your best chance.”_

“ _My father,” she yelled at him, and he realized she was trembling beneath him._

_He didn't have time for this._

“ _Likely where we're headed already. The building is a spiral- there's no way back, and with the fumes and smoke it could go up any moment. We can't risk it.” It was all he could do to keep the regret from his voice._

“ _You could have left already. Why are you helping me?”_

_He laughed, holding up a scarf for her to cover her face, as he already had one over his, “I am a gentleman thief Nakamori-chan. I would never be as uncouth as to leave a lady when she was in danger, especially the daughter of my favourite inspector.” He tried to reassure her with the slightest squeeze of her hand, and then another pull before they were off again._

_They reached a foyer and  could see the entrance filled with light and the sound of Inspector Nakamori’s voice. A wave of relief, exhaustion, and confusion at the horror the night had wrought, as well as his still firm hold of Aoko's hand._

_And then he stopped._

_She slammed into him, a firm body against his own, but he managed to stay still as she reached out to hold him for support. He felt her freeze, felt her seem to go still against him as if she'd registered something, and he prayed to god it was the familiarity he'd felt in the way he lifted an arm to catch her, and his hand still holding hers, although the gem had disappeared and his card gun replaced it. Indeed, when his fingers unwrapped themselves, they felt bereft at the loss._

“ _Kaitou KID,” came the voice from the shadows. He knew the voice by now, the sound of his hunter that was becoming frequent to every heist._

“ _Children!?” snapped Kaito. “It's not even Pandora. Obviously” he snarled tossing up the pink gem before it disappeared. “What is this?”_

“ _This is an opportunity. This is a warning. This is the end,” said the man with a smirk. His eyes flickered as Aoko stood more upright, slightly to the left of Kaito and suddenly she blinked as a light passed over her eyes and a small red dot darted across her chest._

_Kaito froze next to her._

“ _Ah, hello little girl! Not as drunk as you made out to be earlier are you? A shame. You see, my friends don't approve of leaving witnesses.”_

_He shifted in front of her. “Don't.”_

“ _Or you'll what? Bring the house down? Why I think you'll find we already did a rather amenable job at that,” he laughed darkly. “It has been some time since my colleague had a proper kill. I dare say KID's lover should be an excellent notch on his list.”_

“ _I am_ not _his lover!” Kaito heard the complete hatred behind her voice through the words. A pang shot through him. “I don't even like him, and I hardly would be working_ with _him. I'm-”_

“ _She’s not with me,” he cut in, “but you know I prefer to see no one injured. Kill her and you'll have every law enforcement in Japan come down upon your head.”_

_The man shook his head with another dark laugh, “Tsk tsk, Kiddo-san. We already do.”_

_The gunshot sliced through the air and Kaito dropped to the ground with Aoko beneath him. He tried not to crush her, but the pain that shot through his chest was agonizing. It was everything he could do to keep breathing even as he pressed her into the debris. His breath was ragged, and he was well aware he was little more than a dead weight, their bodies so close he'd all but wrapped her inside his jacket._

_He hoped he wouldn't get blood on her._

_He was also surprised to find he was shaking._

_There were yells from across the room, and he managed to raise his arm to send a card flying from his gun. He aimed true, the other man's gun falling to the ground just as footsteps and voices pounded into the room. Backup._

_Too long in coming._

“ _Nakamori-chan are you alright?” asked Kaito as he managed to pull himself off of her. There was a blossom of red over his left arm, and it hung tightly to his side, although he already saw a faint stain along her dress._

_Blood._

“ _You were-”_

“ _It's fine Nakamori-chan. A flesh wound.” He had to look around and see if they were still in danger, if it was all just another trap, even as he heard her father's voice from the corridor. Of course the man in black had disappeared in the interim. No proof, and no still no justice. Not that there ever would be. “And there's your father coming, I shall leave you in his competent hands.”_

“ _But-”_

“ _Be careful Nakamori-chan. These men have no morals and will use any advantage they see fit. It would not do for my favourite inspector's daughter to be injured on the sidelines,” he said, taking her hand to his lips. Her hand was warm, almost overly so. Or had it gotten cold suddenly? His mind was beginning to grow foggy from more than just the dust. How bad was the wound? He managed to stand, but suddenly there was more blood than he had thought. He reached out to touch her dress where the stain he made had spread._

“ _Sorry Nakamori-chan.”_

_She met his eyes for a moment, possibly trying to think of something to say, but seemed unable to find the words. Maybe torn between yelling at him and thanking him. Or just trying to decide if it was right to arrest a man who was bleeding out over your evening gown._

_By the time she opened her mouth to speak, her father had stepped into the room with a yell of “Aoko!” and Kaito gave a low bow, before setting off a smoke bomb to disappear into._

_From the rafters he watched as she spun around, a furrow on her brow, before she threw herself at her father._

_For now, things would be alright._

_As far as things went, it was a small lie._

 

* * *

 

They grey relentless downpour hadn't let up, and the forecast showed no signs of abating. Aoko watched the rain and fog splatter onto the window of the cafe she frequented on the upper west side. There was a slow murmur of voices, and half a dozen regulars chatting with the baristas to keep from going out. From the corner of her she watched them ponder over the cakes and cookies that filled the glass case. She watched a little girl reach out to the swirls of marzipan and chocolate, her mother paying as the woman tied up a cake with ribbon and string.

She poured herself another cup of tea from the pot on her table, ignoring the salad, with her thoughts thousands of miles away on a different shore.

Outside, fairy-lights glinted from the trees and lit the windows, adding a romantic quality that almost made the weather worth it.

Aoko was drawn from her reverie by the feel of someone’s gaze on her, and briefly met the eyes of a young man glancing in from the street. Nondescript, nothing particular, no specific nationality evident from under his umbrella and a shock of messy hair.

Blue eyes.

She clenched her cup of tea.

The man who walked in didn't look anything like Kaito, even if you ignored the dark hair pulled into a short pony tail, and the blue eyes that darted only once in her direction. He was taller, thicker, and had a small goatee among other things. His clothes were sleek, but like nothing she could imagine Kaito wearing, and he was several years senior to her by the faint lines and slight touch of grey.

Still, she caught herself staring as the host seated him at the table nearly on top of her own, the two of them sharing the window seats in the quiet corner of the cafe.

“ _Nihon desu-ka?”_

She brought her head up to meet his gaze. The blue eyes met hers again, with almost a moment of recognition that was gone as quickly as it came. The Japanese was tinged with an Osakan dialect, though still...

“ _Hai. Ekoda.”_

The Japanese fell gracefully off her tongue, the switch no longer taking time as it once had when she first moved. These days she could fall between the two without a second thought, the years of working with both at any given moment coming into play. There were enough tourists and a thriving Japanese population in the city that she rarely went more than a few days without speaking her natural tongue, and Skype had made long distance calls a thing of the past.

He perked up, shifting in his seat and causing her to look over him again. It was unlikely, improbable, even if her apartment was close by, even after he'd come in seeing her in the window, even with the familiar gaze that took in every new customer, every table, every raindrop landing on the sill, and her every glance.

When she reached across the table for pepper, finally touching her neglected salad, the shaker went flying across the way before she could make it. She made to wince, but the crash never came. When she looked it was his hand that flew out to catch it with the ease of a juggler.

Reflexes that nearly collided with hers in midair.

“Sorry,” he said as he set it on the table, the smile of a person caught in an act he knew he shouldn't have any part in frozen on his face.

“No, entirely my fault,” she said, glancing at his face. Her eyes searched for a tell-tale sign, for a hint of something that might give her the answers she was looking for. “Thank you for catching it.”

His hand was so close she could brush her fingers across his wrist. Reach out and look for a pulse, for the callouses, for an unnatural smoothness in his fingertips that might speak tenfold.

What would he do if she invited him to her apartment for something other than tea? Would he follow?

Her eyes flickered to the carefully trimmed beard and moustache. Would she discover it was held on by nothing more than carefully applied glue and adhesive? Was his hair really that long? Would he let it get that long or was it nothing more than a wig, with his own messy locks beneath?

Could she corner him on her sofa? Her window? Her two inches of kitchen as she took him apart and warned him of all the reasons he _wasn't_ supposed to be here?

Was she wrong entirely? Would she find herself with a stranger who happened to share the same eyes as a boy she... that she....

The thought didn't want to come, and she amended her train of thought: who had shared her life when they were hardly more than children.

He was watching her, the carefully cultured ease still there as well as the sharpness. You didn't get to the rank she held without knowing what it took to make someone aware of every individual in a room.

If she wasn't wrong, did he even care? Or was this just 1412 scouting the detective he knew would be in charge of his investigation? He was many things, but never really an idiot. Not about the important things.

He would have been caught long before if that had been the case.

“I should be going,” he said after a moment. He folded up the paper he'd had with him and the familiarity was back in the eyes. There was a whisper of something else, which had her nearly grab his wrist, damn the consequences. “Look, the rain's even letting up.”

Almost true, but there was no break in the clouds and no flash of sunlight. The steady downpour had faded to a heavy mist, and the fairy lights in the window and trees seemed to frame his face through the glass.

“I suppose it is.” She wondered if her cheeks were flushed.

“A pleasure, Detective Nakamori,” he said with a nod and leaving cash tucked into a bill fold before turning for the door. She reached to see how much else she owed, and felt her hand still at the bill that would more than cover their lunch and her several pots she'd been nursing all afternoon.”

It wasn't until she set back into the rain and fog, twinkle lights and lamp lit torrents that poured over the cracks in the sidewalk to splatter against her shoes, only feeling the light dance of droplets on her cheeks, only then did she realize she'd never told him her name.

 

* * *

 

_Kaito knew he looked like shit._

_And Aoko was picking up on it._

_It was obvious she knew there had been something off that morning, when he showed up late with a sort of tightness around his eyes that made him look ill. There was a lack of his normal banter, and she couldn’t miss that he was fading in and out of sleep._

_It had been three days since the KID heist, and he'd worn her out Monday asking about what had happened and the explosions, and if she'd managed to corner the thief or not. She'd nearly hit him over the head with the mop, but by the end of the day she obviously had noticed something had been_ off _and even offered to stay and clean the classroom by herself._

_This morning he looked even worse, if it was even possible, and Kaito seriously wondered if he was dying. His arm at least felt ready to fall off._

_He was also aware he couldn't keep up the act from the day before._

_By lunch she walked over, clearly seeing the flush to his face and his eyes fixed on his desk. He felt her hand on his forehead, and he tried to pull away as quickly as he could with an irritable scowl._

“ _What_ Ahou _-ko?”_

 _Her eyes narrowed, and he felt himself shrink as she leaned over him. “_ Bakaito! _I think you have a fever.”_

“ _Mmmmm...can't miss anymore classes,” he muttered before shifting his head down onto his desk and burying his face in his hands. His skin felt overly warm, but clammy as well. Tight in a way that was uncomfortable and made him want to crawl under his desk. There was a light sheen of sweat on his neck and each breath he took required effort for it to come out._

“ _And what if you have the flu and give it to the rest of us, eh? What kind of selfish motive is that?! I'm telling our teacher and taking you home.”_

“ _You absolutely are not.”_

“ _I am.”_

_He groaned and buried his face back in his arms, which, if anything, confirmed her suspicion._

_She was packing his things and dragging him home a moment later. He'd tried to protest, but even he had to admit that it was getting near a point he couldn't stand and a trip to the school nurse was out of the question. A glance in a mirror in the hall told him his colour had gone from bad to worse, the pallor almost grey rather than white, and his eyes were glassy._

_He blinked twice, trying to make the image clear in his head. Looking back at the hall, it began to spin._

“ _Here, lean on me,” she said reaching out for his left arm._

_He jerked away with pain etched across his face. Every nerve in his body was screaming, and he tasted blood as he bit his tongue to keep from screaming out. His arm curled into his side._

_He managed, in the fog, to see the suspicion on her face, and he blurted out hoarsely, “C- Can't Aoko. Might make you sick.”_

“ _Idiot! If I'm going to get sick I’ve already caught what you have. Don't be so stubborn.”_

_He shifted and finally amended by handing out his right arm. The pain was still there, anything along his chest hurt, but it felt less like being skinned alive. She rolled her eyes and allowed him to place it around her shoulders._

_Kaito realized in short order that without her assistance, he would not have remained standing much longer._

_They were mostly silent in the walk, his head hung, and he nearly tripped when they finally reached his gate, by that point the fog of pain and heat too much to handle even for him. Aoko must have felt him sway as she managed to catch him before he fell. “I think-”_

“ _Definitely sick,” her lips were tight._

“ _Yeah.”_

_The door opened and his mother was looking down at them both with a sense of horror. Her face was nearly as pale as his and she pushed past Aoko to feel Kaito's head._

“ _Mom?”_

_She wasn't suppose to be home, or at least he thought she wasn't. He was having a hard time remembering what day it was._

“ _Idiot son! I knew you shouldn't have gone in today!” Her words had a sense of urgency that made him scowl. If she kept that up Aoko would know something was wrong. Aoko had been there after all and saw him shot. If Aoko knew more she'd be in worse danger, and she couldn't..._

“ _I think I'm going to-”_

“ _Aoko-chan can you help me get this imbecile that has the nerve to call itself my child upstairs?” Chikage wrapped her arm around the boy's left side, and Aoko lifted up his right arm. Kaito was nearly dead weight, and he wondered at the fact he_ hadn't _passed out entirely. It had gotten even harder to breath._

_Maybe he was dying after all._

_His bedroom was clean, and Kaito realized his mother must have been more worried than he thought. He felt a sense of gratitude as he slumped into the bed, still on fire but feeling his consciousness leaving him._

“ _Will he be okay?” Aoko's voice sounded far away._

“ _I'm here,” said his mother. “I can manage. You shouldn't tarry in case you get sick as well Aoko-chan. Thank you for your help. I'll make sure Kaito invites you over for dinner as a thank you as soon as he's feeling well again.”_

_Kaito turned slightly, completely out of it by now, with only enough sense of mind to yell into his pillow rather than outloud. Chikage rushed over, her eyes hooded, and her face impassive. It was the expression Kaito's father had worn when things went wrong._

“ _You should go Aoko.”_

“ _If you need anything-”_

_The woman nodded, but Aoko had been dismissed._

_It was Aoko whose eyes fluttered to Kaito's tortured face, and clearly wondered what could possibly be wrong and why he'd bother to come in so sick._

_Aoko who now would know something was... off._

_He knew in the morning she would call to make sure he was better._

_She would yell at him and call him an idiot once he was conscious again._

_Not knowing Chikage's mask followed Aoko all the way home._

_Kaito too far gone to realize what he'd done._

 

* * *

 

She knew she looked good, and the whistles and winks from the other officers made her smirk a little as she stepped into the atrium of the museum. She knew the Chief would have a heart attack when he saw precisely how much she had charged to the business account for the venture, but given her vehemence at not wanting to be there she'd decided to consider it her bonus.

Or a bribe.

Bonus sounded better though.

She saw his eyebrows arch as she approached, pleased with the swishing noise the dress made and the hint of stocking they showed along the prominent slit along the side.

“Nakamori,” his voice held a hint of surprise.

“Not even a tux? Really sir.”

He rolled his eyes, “I'm here to work, not blend in. Can you even run in those heels? And by God woman, where'd you put your gun?”

“Made for comfort, and thus the cost. As for the gun,” she patted her upper thigh which suddenly showed a slight outline.

His look was less than amused. “I didn't realize I'd hired a Bond girl.”

“You didn't. I'm far more competent.”

He laughed, which she trusted was a good sign. Still, she'd blend in and that was the point. Frankly there was a slim possibility he might not recognize her at all considering it had been over a decade. At least that she was aware of.

She had barely recognized herself in the mirror of her apartment as she left, the dark blue silk with sapphires and diamonds around her neck. Her hair piled up gracefully, and makeup professionally done. The idea was that if he did recognize her it would require more work as she slipped amongst the other Japanese delegation and models that had been invited and hired to attend.

Easier to pinpoint among the mixed crowd, but still more difficult to pick out than her usual uniform.

She took a glass of champagne that was being passed around, and her Chief gave her a stern look. She tapped the glass, “Blending in. I'll only have the one anyway. A prop.”

Somewhat true. Frankly she also just needed a drink if she was going to get through the damn night.

“That dress really is...striking...” she noticed the chief was still staring, unsurprising given her usual attire’s practicality.

“Also harder for him to use as a disguise,” she pointed out. “He's good. Possibly the best, but not everything is possible. On the fly it would be hard to do so with this little fabric. I'm not saying impossible but-” she winked causing her superior to slightly choke.

“Enough. I deserved that. How do we know _who_ he disguised as?”

She'd nearly forgotten, distracted by how pleased as she was with his reaction. She highly doubted it, but then she'd been waiting for the moment all day. She stepped forward and reached up to grab his cheek before pulling hard. He let out and curse slapping her hand away and she laughed.

“Well you aren't at least. Obviously we can't do that with every officer, so I made prior arrangements. There is industrial strength make up remover set up at various locations and in small kits that we will hand out-- including a latex remover. An hour or so before the heist, officers will be required to apply it as a precautionary measure.. It's not entirely foolproof, but it should make it far more difficult. At the moment it looks like samples of liquor-- so excluding myself and the vendor it shouldn't be tampered with. We can't have everyone apply it-- but all officers and staff should.”

“And after?”

“I would say repeat a half hour before-- but again not fool proof. Anyone directly in charge of the gem though-- yes. The benefit of course is I am the only Japanese member on staff, and right now it will be rather difficult to disguise himself as me.”

She watched his eyes flicker down to her cleavage and then the flush on his face. “Indeed.”

“Of course,” she said waving a hand, “there's no discerning the guests, but we can do our best. Keeping them out of the main room is the most important, and given the high security detail from other forces it will hardly be on our necks when we've proven to be in full battalion. Enough?”

“When I catch this damn thief.”

For a moment he reminded her of her father and she looked away. “I'd say it would be getting everyone in and out in one piece and retrieval of the jewel. All of which we have contingency plans for. Meanwhile, I'm going to enjoy the party. The last time I attended a Gala for KID I wasn't old enough to drink.” She winked and turned to head straight to the bar. “I'll pick you up an Islay.”

She heard him curse as she walked away.

 

* * *

 

_It was a police knock, and of course his mother was out._

_Kaito was still exhausted, although the infection had finally cleared up some after a week of touch and go. It was starting to worm into week two, which hopefully meant the knock was just Aoko. He carefully opened the door, reaffirmed by the package of notes under one arm._

_He knew he still looked like hell. His eyes were red rimmed, his skin pale, and he still couldn't hold his arm correctly even when he saw her noticing. His fever had mostly broken, but now it was just an off and on low grade one that left a sheen of sweat slight on his brow, and his hair flat and limp._

“ _Aoko?”_

_He blinked again trying to clear his head enough to register why she had to choose now to show up._

“ _Kaito what are you doing! You look awful. Where's your mother?”_

“ _Out.” He muttered turning around and shifting a blanket that was wrapped around his shoulders. “What are you doing here_ Ahou _-ko? Some of us are trying to rest.” He muttered going back inside to flop on the couch, while Aoko closed the door behind herself._

“ _Trying to make sure you're not dead! You look horrid Kaito. Do you know what's wrong yet?”_

“ _Flu-thing. Not contagious anymore,” he managed under his blanket shutting his eyes. He'd shifted so he was more on his back and careful to prop his arm up next to him in a way that might be construed as natural._

_She leaned over him and pressed her hand against his head, “You feel like you still have a fever.”_

“ _Probably. Did earlier,” he shut his eyes and she frowned reaching for a cloth next to him. Damp but no longer cold. She picked it up, as well as an empty water glass. “Here. I'll get you some more water and ice. Have you eaten at all?”_

_Too many questions and his head still aching too much to answer._

“ _Mmmm,” he buried his face into the couch._

“ _I'm going to take that as a no,” she took the things and helped herself to the kitchen. She didn't know how long before Chikage-san would be back, but obviously it wasn't doing Kaito well._

_She poured some water, and took out ice to refill the cloth for his head. After a moment she started to boil some water for tea as well, and looked through the cabinet and fridge. She could whip up some miso for a broth, something fairly easy for his stomach._

_Putting on another pot, she let it start to heat up as she walked back, picking up two pain relievers as well._

“ _Kaito?”_

_He let out a groan, but cracked open an eye._

“ _Here-” she said holding out the water and medicine. He scowled but took the water, and pills before downing it, slowly drinking, for once without a complaint._

“ _I’m heating up some miso and tea for supper okay? I'll make extra for your Mom if she gets back and wants some.”_

“ _Blergh. I'm sick of broth,” he said flopping down as she pressed the cold pack to his forehead._

“ _I'm pretty sure you can't hold anything else down.”_

_Fighting against it, he found himself drifting off again as she went back to the kitchen. She busied herself with preps, trying not to think about what was wrong with him. He was obviously sick, but it wasn't anything she recognized and why did he seem even worse than he had earlier in the week?_

_She went to toss the miso package out._

_He heard her open the garbage can, and never heard the lid fall._

_His mother wouldn’t have forgotten to..._

_Blood._

_Several towels soaked in it, as well as bandages and antiseptic. There was a bottle of antibiotic for infection, made out to Chikage Kuroba, but empty and sitting on top. The gauze stared below her, remnants of tape, and...._

_He heard Aoko slam a cabinet shut and then a soft,_ “ _No.”_

_What excuse could he give? What could he tell her as far as why he would be bleeding? Where had it all come from? Maybe he'd cut himself, trying to do something idiotic while he was too sick. Made it worse. Obvious._

_Of course it was obvious._

_Aoko would never buy it._

_She’d seen how he'd held his arm. About the way he'd shed away when she touched it earlier. Her father was an Inspector of the Police Force, she’d have been drilled on the symptoms of infection before she could walk._

_She also had been the only one to see KID leaping out to take a bullet two days before he’d come down sick._

_There was silence, and for a moment he thought she may have left. In the end though there was the sound of footsteps, and through half open eyes he watched her bring in a bowl of soup and a pot of tea. Her face was impassive, and he tried instead to focus on keeping his breathing steadier. She was watching him sleep and turned-_

_His eyes flew open as the pain coursed through his arm, “Fuck!”_

_He darted awake and his eyes landed on Aoko as she made a soft strangled sound. He knew Aoko had never heard him curse like that, yet she darted forward to help catch him before he fell off the couch._

“ _Aoko?” Why had he let her in at all?_

_Maybe he was wrong._

_Faintly, he prayed his mother had managed to clean all the blood._

_So much blood._

“ _It's okay,” she murmured, helping wrap the blanket back around him. He pulled slightly away, and she saw his eyes flick to his shoulder as though looking for something._

Blood? _His mind supplied for him. Was the gauze soaking through?_

“ _Sorry. I-”_

“ _You're sick. It's fine,” she said, reaching out for the miso. “Here. You should eat something; you look like you're wasting away.”_

_He shifted a little, a mou of pain on his face, but he took the bowl and took a couple spoonfuls._

“ _Thanks,” he finally managed, setting it down and hand shaking slightly from the effort._

_It scared him. How sick he was, and the way her eyes flickered back to the shoulder again. She knew, and if she tried he wouldn't be able to hide it. Not when a strong wind could push him over._

_The look on her face said everything though, and he wondered which horrified her more: that he might be KID or that he might be trying to take care of a gunshot wound at home._

_It wasn't just a graze after all, she'd been there and seen._

“ _I'm fine, Aoko. I am getting better,” he managed to keep his voice firm as he took another spoonful of soup. “Mom should be home soon. You can head back. You already did too much. I hope to be back to school next week sometime.”_

“ _Finish dinner first,” she said firmly. “And at least a cup of the tea, and maybe she'll be home by then and I'll go. I brought my homework, and Dad's at the station so it's not like it matters where I do it.”_

_He saw her eyes watching his hand, watching him as he drank his soup and ignored the scrutiny._

_He was ambidextrous, damn if he couldn't use whatever hand he saw fit even if she knew-_

_She poured herself a cup of tea looking away._

_He made a silent prayer, hoping against hope maybe,just maybe, he was wrong and she hadn't noticed but..._

_When you've eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth._

_Kaito might hate detectives, but damn if it didn’t make it true._  
  


* * *

 

She touched her face again, uncertain at the reflection staring back from the other side of the looking glass. _I really do look… good._

In fact, the only qualm she had at all was the possibility of it showing the gun strapped to the top of her thigh, but the hint of garters and silk stockings drew the eye away from any misplaced shapes that might appear.

The Chief had been right: she did feel like a character out of a Bond movie, and it was difficult for her lips not to quirk at the idea of it.

_Perhaps he won't recognize me at all._

But the idea caused a pang as well. Another part of her _wished_ for the recognition, or the look on his face when he saw her-dressed and presented like an adult rather than a child.

“And he could hardly complain of my shape now,” she said with a laugh, letting her hand run along the curve of her hip. True- she might not be the same as some of the models that had been hired for the event but-

Her head turned as she heard the door shut and lock turn. Impossible, as she'd already locked the door, and she was met by the still figure of KID staring back at her. She might have accused him of following her, if the incredulous look on his face hadn't told another story. He'd thought the room was empty, or in the very least hadn't expected to find her inside.

Her hand was on her gun a moment later, just as she saw him draw his. He was close, but not so close she could make out the details, especially over the pounding of her blood in her ears.

“Didn't you see it was occupied?” She told him sharply, hand tight on the trigger.

“I also saw the out of order sign. I rather thought the two were correlated,” his dry tone carrying through the room. He looked uneasy, shifting his weight as his eyes flickered over her. She felt a small wave of triumph as his eyes lingered along the dress, the slit where the top of her stockings peeked through, the dip along her chest to show the curve of her breast. She might have accused him of leering if she hadn't seen a tightness around his lips, and a faint hesitance in his sharp eyes.

“It had a perfectly adequate mirror,” she said glancing away.

“So I see,” his eyes met hers with a bit of a smile. “Grown vain in our old age, Nakamori-san?”

“I see you haven't changed a bit, KID-san. Breaking into the women's powder rooms? Whose poor dress did you steal this time?”

His posture changed as the initial shock gave way to old familiarity. The sure-fire cockiness in his stance, the smoldering eyes that laughed at her, the way his gun shifted with ease in his hand that her's never could.

Not that she wasn't good. She was very good, but not pointed at _him._

He tilted his head, his amused smile resting on his face, “I wasn't sure if I would see you.” She could tell there was a hint of something else in his face, and a twist of guilt clenched in her gut. “Indeed, I admit a bit of a surprise.”

“I assure you,” she said through gritted teeth, “if I’d had my way I wouldn't be within a hundred miles of your heist.” She didn't let her gun waver, and kept her feet firmly planted. She regretted her choice of heels, but then she hadn't expected to get this close. She hadn't expected to do much but provide backup to ensure the idiot man didn't end up shot.

“Oh?”

How could he be so infuriating after so long? Shouldn't he have grown up some after a decade? The last time she'd seen him, tired and recovering in a room in London under Hakuba's care, things had been...different. There hadn't been time for anything, and whatever had passed between them did so under the hawk-like gaze of the detective.

It had been an accident they'd even been there at the same time, and Kaito had been in no condition to act himself or even know she had been there.

Still-

“Unfortunately no amount of explanation of how my judgement concerning your subsequent arrest may be compromised could change my boss’ mind. Americans, it would seem, feel that a deep seated root of revenge is a boon rather than any type of bias. It would also appear that as the only person on the force who has been previously present a heist of yours, never mind years ago, they felt I was unequivocally necessary to have here,” she cocked the gun.

She considered shooting as she saw mirth starting to bud on his lips. Thought it was funny did he? Maybe she should shoot him between the legs and see what he did.

“Dare I ask what your answer was?”

Her eyes were hooded as she looked at him steadily, “Fuck off.”

“The mouth on you, Nakamori-san!”

Her eyes were sharp, “As though you have cause to talk.”

“Gentlemen thief,” he said with a slight bow, although neither his gun nor gaze wavered, “I try to keep my language complimentary.”

“Complimentary my ass.”

His smirk diminished and she watched a seriousness settle over him that hadn't been there before. “ _Compromised_ you said?”

It took her a moment to realize he was referring to her earlier comment. “Don't play obtuse. It doesn't suit you.”

“Call it curiosity. It has been over ten years, Nakamori-san.”

Too long. Too long to know anything about the man in front of her. God, he could have a wife and kids now-or at least someone waiting at home. He could be doing any number of things on his day job, or committed any list of transgressions that she should find unforgivable.

“Well, maybe I've grown up.”

“Maybe. Enough to claim bias to get out of a case that could make your career.”

“Leave it!”

He shifted his weight again and she could feel the sweat building on her palms. How could she have ever been so naive? How could she have missed the telltale tics that his face and hands gave. The stance? The tilt of his head and way his hair still slipped nearly over his eyes? The hat and monocle hid some, that was undeniable, but it was still obvious. Still utterly there to see for anyone with eyes.

“You could shoot me,” he pointed out, “You've had a perfect opportunity and we both know the shot would land, even if not fatally. You can't miss at this range.”

She kept her face still. _Poker face_. She'd never been as good as Kaito, but she could be good enough. To get as far as she had you couldn't let your emotions rule yourself.

“I could.”

“So tell me Nakamori-san,” she saw him move, and kept her gun tight in her fist. She didn't drop it even as he stepped forward and lowered his. “Why haven't you?”

It was a fine line between hate and love. A finer line if you couldn't prove a truth you knew was there, standing before you but just out of arm's reach. She had come to terms with Kaitou KID, but a life time of disdain had made it difficult to come entirely clean.

“I told you,” she said hand tightening on the gun, “I'm compromised.”

“Compromised,” his voice sent a shiver that slipped through her. Her breath caught in her throat as he took another step forward until the gun was nearly pressed to his breast. “Nakamori-san-”

“Don't-” her voice cracked.

“Why are you here?” His voice slipped away from the silken tones from earlier. This close she could see fine lines brushing along his eyes and lips. A hint of worry behind violet eyes, that watched her with every care they gave to any priceless gem he might steal.

It took a moment to find her voice, and she kept it as taut as burnished steel, “I told you. It's my job. Why did you have to come _here_?”

The smile that slipped on his lips was bitter, “Why Nakamori-san, as you said, it's my job.”

Her free hand flew up, wrapping around the cool metal chain of the monocle, and the small charm sharp in her palm. She began to pull just as the touch of silk wrapped around her wrist, iron strong and unwavering. She could feel his pulse vibrating beneath, hot and as fast as hummingbird's wings. For a moment it was enough to remind her that he was human, flesh and blood, not a ghost come to haunt her out of a storybook.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk-now how would that be fair Nakamori-san?” His face was centimeters from her own, and she could feel the warmth radiating from him. The faint scent of roses and chemicals clung to his clothing, clean soap and dust. It was a familiar scent, one that made her ache and caused her throat to tighten.

“Does it even matter?” she said sharply, “Has it mattered at all since-”

“Some things always matter. Give me this much dignity at least.”

Neither of them moved from their stalemate.

Finally, after what might have been hours or minutes, she felt another hand encased in silk wrap around the hand that clenched her gun. Reluctantly, she allowed him to guide it away, down and to her side. She didn't release it entirely, although her fingers clenched at the feel of his hand along the back of her own.

“Where did you even hide that thing?” He asked in a low whisper in her ear, another shiver running over her. “Or did you just plan to brandish it the entire heist? I imagine that would be one for the-”

Fine. If he wanted to play this game then so be it. She wrapped her hand back around his, until they both had hold of the gun, and without changing her expression led his hand under the slit of her dress and up along her leg until it reached the holster at the top of her thigh. She felt him go still against her and his breath catch. Together, they slipped the gun back into the holster, before slipping her fingers over his gloved hand now resting at the top of her bare leg.

“Naka-”

It was awkward, with her hand still wrapped around his monocle and his other hand held tight by hers, but she leaned forward anyway. To hell with it. To hell with the whole damn situation. She'd had enough, years of it, and she'd done stupider things at worse times.

Maybe.

He didn't move at first. He did nothing when she pressed her lips against his, nothing as she leaned closer to him until she could feel him vibrating against her.

She pulled away, just a hairsbreadth, and returned again, this time more forceful and persistent. She didn't release the monocle, but she did tug at the gloves covering his left hand. She felt the silk slip off, felt his fingers tighten along her thigh and his thumb running a soft circle that elicited a groan from her throat.

This time he kissed back.

She was forced to let go of the monocle, but reached for a length of hair instead, jarring his hat slightly. He didn't seem to notice as his lips opened to catch hers this time, and a sliver of tongue slipped through. She opened her mouth, giving him entrance as he murmured across her lips, and the hand on her thigh running along the edge of her stockings. Her knees felt weak, and she held on for dear life when his other hand, still encased in silk, ran along the open back of her dress to dance along her spine.

When his hat clattered to the ground neither of them could be arsed to care.

“ _Aoko.”_

His lips moved to her ear, breathing her name as she let out a soft cry at a the feel of soft lips there. She leaned back, glad for the counter, and found herself pressed against it a moment later. His lips were chasing down along her neck, her collarbone, along the top of her breasts, while it was all she could do to remain standing.

When she felt the hand under her skirt brush against the soft silk and lace of her underwear she had to bite her lip from screaming his name.

He paused, his fingers stopping, almost drawing back uncertainly, before she took the hand and guided it back, enough that he ran across the fabric gently to and fro, causing her to shake as he murmured unintelligible words into her skin.

" _Aoko,_ ” he whispered again. Her breasts had nearly escaped the confines of their silken top, and his hand had moved from her back to wrap tightly around the tight bud. She let out a short gasp, already so far gone it was hard to remember what was up or down. Part of her, a very tiny part, knew she needed to stop, told herself it had to stop. This wasn't Kaito, no matter how much she wanted him to be, this was the man she was charged with bringing in. The man she'd spent years of study to catch. The man she was still suppose to hate, even if that had become an old safe lie upon her lips.

His fingers wrapped around her nipple as he brought his lips back to hers. Both her arms were wrapped around him by now, holding on for dear life as his fingers finally, _finally,_ slipped past the silk and lace of her underwear to brush upon the top of her opening. She pulled her lips away to bury them into his neck, his tie somehow dislodged, buttons opened ( _Had she done that? She couldn't remember)._ She bit down to stifle her cry and felt him jerk beneath her and give a cry of his own.

She was on the counter as his fingers pushed inside her careful and searching and pulling from her another yell. They were quick, fleeting, impossibly long and clever. She was wet and had already come once, ( _twice?)_ and God knew when or where he'd learned that. She'd pushed back his shirt, her own fingers raking down his back, down the tight muscles that she found there- hard and lean after years of rigorous chases.

“ _Kaito,_ ” she cried, spent, as he slipped his fingers out so he could catch her as she curled against him breathing hard. She felt a bit like crying, or screaming, or laughing until she did all three. Her head was light, and her body on fire, and she could have lost herself in his strong and protective embrace.

She wasn't even surprised when he drew a handkerchief to clean his fingers. More surprising was the flutter of kisses pressed to her forehead, cheeks, and nose. More shocking was the caress against her cheek, and the cradle of arms that asked nothing of her.

“I'm sorry. I'm so sorry,” he whispered softly. Rambling really. “I...”

“Don't ruin this, Kaito Kuroba. Remind me in five minutes, or half an hour, or tomorrow morning after you've done this heist. But please...give me this much.” She looked up, the monocle still on his eye somehow, and she raised a hand up to remove it, this time the thief letting go.

Kaito had gotten older.

The years had been kind to him, and in his thirties he looked more dashing than he had as a too old teenager. Violet eyes gave way to a stormy blue, trained on her with worry and fear. Idiot. She was an adult now, and if anyone should be worried it should be her.

“Aoko. I didn't mean- I had no intention-” he started and stopped, the words seemed caught in his throat as she grabbed his tie and wrapped it around her fist pulling him back.

“No intention?”

His eyes flashed, “We were in _high school_ the last time I really saw you. I'm not sure I even knew what a proper kiss was.”

She pulled him back down with another tug of his tie, “Well you certainly have learned.”

When he caught her lips this time it was softer, gentlier, he slipped his leg between hers as he wove his arms back around her and dipped her into the kind of kiss a person reads about, or you saw in the movies. Her fist kept a tight hold of the tie, scared that if she let him go the whole thing would erupt into an elaborate dream.

As he drew back they were both out breath, and he had to smile as he touched her swollen lips, “Compromised hmm?”

Her laughter burst forth catching them both off guard. She couldn't stop as she held onto him, letting it take hold and all of the hysterics poured out into it. She felt him shudder with suppressed mirth as well as she shook her head, “You...I...”

“Hmm?”

“The Chief-” she said between breaths, “I- when I told him I shouldn't be assigned the case he said he didn't care what the situation was and he implied-” she waved a hand between them.

 

He laughed in response and she felt his thumb gently run circles over her skin on her lower back, “Is that a promise?”

“Oh God yes.”

She left her head against his chest, listening to the sound of his heart beating. For a moment she could almost imagine that it was a different situation altogether, until she heard a noise from outside and Kaito's groan.

“No,” she said reaching down to catch his hand that had started to untangle itself.

“We have to. Well I don't...but I do, and you most definitely have to,” he said, reaching out to push a strand away from her face.

“At least tell me this is it,” she said firmly, “tell me that this is the gem you're looking for and that-”

“Aoko, you know I-”

She rolled her eyes, pushing him back and turning to the mirror. She was a mess, for that matter he was too. Her lips were swollen, her makeup smeared, and her hair tumbling out of it's precariously set updo. At least her dress she could readjust from where it had all but come undone around her, but still the rest of it was barely salvageable.

She felt fingers in her hair and looked up to see Kaito in the mirror smiling at her. He had a handful of pins in his mouth that he'd procured from heaven knew where, and was carefully adjusting her curls in his fingers and setting them back in place.

Her cheeks reddened, and she tried to focus on fixing her make up, but found it difficult given the distraction his administrations was causing.

“That wasn't necessary,” she muttered once he was done. She would never admit that he'd done a substantially better job than she could have even begun to achieve. Indeed, it looked almost better than it had started, with soft tendrils wrapping around her face and a stray lock landing on her shoulder.

“Mmm, perhaps I wanted to,” his fingers brushed her cheek, and she turned around to look up at him. His clothes were still mostly askew, jacket on the floor, and his cheeks had the same flush as hers, lips swollen, and a dark love bite sat new and obvious against the pale channel of his throat.

She wouldn't do this. They couldn't do this, at least not right now. “It's nearly ten,” she said finally, “I have no doubt the Chief's thought I've made a run for it, and you have less than an hour to do the last of your preparations.” She tugged on his tie, “Just- just finish this alright? You know where I live.”

He held up his hand in alarm. “I wouldn't dream of-”

“Oh yes you would,” she reached up pressing a kiss to his lips. “You already have. I'm sick of all this, and you're here-- even when you swore you wouldn't be. Don't make me come after you.”

“Ao-”

Another kiss. She wouldn't listen to his protestations. _Couldn't._ “Block the door after me Kaito-it wouldn't do for someone else to catch you when the heist hasn't even begun.”

She was proud with the ease she pushed back her shoulders, snatching her clutch and checking her gun one last time (a flash of leg that she knew Kaito was watching). She was prouder that her nerves held, and that she didn't fly back into the room, or begin shaking the moment the door closed behind her.

Of all the ways she had imagined their meeting, of all the nights she lay there considering the what might have beens, of all the times she thought what it might have been like to have at least tried...

She shook her head, clearing the thoughts. Now was not the time to get distracted by affairs that should have started over a decade ago.

She had a heist to run.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the heist it's time to deal with the aftermath, and what it will mean for things to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry it took forever to update. Editing took... forever and life has a way of being unkind. I felt given the solemnity of the day as a person who lives in the USA, we could all use a little bit of a perk up. 
> 
> That said, here's part two!

_Kaito was nearly too late when they made their first move against her._

_Although… as an afterthought, it was as much his fault as well._  

_No doubt Aoko must have thought it had been him, the soft rustling of someone entering the house. Her father would never be home so early from a heist, but then again Kaito hardly bothered knocking these days. She’d probably thought he’d snuck in to raid the fridge or come bother her._

_What saved her was probably the decision to try to catch Kaito off guard, thinking two could play at that game, and all the better if she managed to catch him breaking into her house._  

_Except this time it wasn't Kaito._

_He'd found out after a heist when the usual man wasn't there, and a carefully laid line about his girl was dropped. He'd nearly left the gem behind and just fled the scene, and would have run but...damn damn damn._

  _Kaito tried calling, already halfway to house, expecting to be too late._

  _It was too easy to imagine her confusion at seeing the outline of the dark hat, and the shadow showed the gun in the man's hand. She was sharp. Maybe not as sharp as himself or Hakuba, but she would recognise him as the same man from KID's last heist, and if she recognised him she would never be safe again._

  _Another try for her number. No one picked up._

  _He dialled yet again and still voice mail._

  _He all but crashed on her rooftop, shedding his KID garments as he darted to a window, and could hear the voice ring out._

 “ _Now, now, Nakamori-chan. It isn't polite to spy on a guest."_

_Kaito held his breath._

 “ _Come out now and I won't need to harm you. I want you alive after all. Hardly bait if you're already dead,” the man yelled._

“ _Nakamori-chan,” the gravely sing-song voice sent a chill through Kaito, “Now what's the point of these games? Come along little girl. Surely you have some lovely stories you'd like to tell. Does your father know the extremes KID goes to for you? Do you invite the thief into your bed? It makes me think we're wrong and perhaps Kuroba Toichi_ is _dead. Shall I keep an eye out for his son?”_

  _Kaito felt his stomach drop as the man's accusations were thrown about. He heard a sharp intake of breath from nearly beneath him, likely the sound of math and facts sinking in._

  _Put like that it was easy enough to render._

  _Eight years dead._

  _Eight years to return._

 “ _Ah, is that you Nakamori-chan?”_

  _Kaito heard her step back and dropped to the floor behind her before slipping a hand over her mouth. She nearly screamed but he stifled the sound and whispered a quick_ “ _Shh” in her ear. She turned her head and Kaito gave a shake of his own as his eyes remained trained on the stairs._

  _He let go of her mouth and held up a finger to his lips. He was so close he could feel her heart was pounding against him, but she let him take her hand and lead her towards her father's bedroom, the closest room, opening the door silently and pulling her inside towards the open window._

  _The sound of pounding of footsteps ran behind him. Kaito pulled her to the window, holding a hand out to her as he leaped upon the ledge. She stared back at him and he felt less like himself and more like KID at that precise moment._

_Without another word she nodded and grabbed his hand again so he could help her onto the ledge. The window slammed shut, and there was the sound of gunshots and shattering glass once they managed to reach the roof._  

“ _Run,” Kaito said, holding her hand tight. They reached the edge and she turned to look at him, but gasped as he slipped her into his arms and a moment later they were leaping across the way to his house._  

_Thank God, they'd at least managed to head in the opposite direction from where he’d left his KID disguise. He'd already had his cover blown without the added insult of it laid before him._  

_He thrust his phone into her palm. “Call your father. You need to warn him.”_

 “ _Kaito- what's...what's going--”_

  _Kaito bit his lip, looking everywhere but at her as the poker face slipped over his visage. “I came back from working on a new set of magic tricks and saw that man letting himself into your house. I...it looked like he had a gun and I thought you might be in trouble.”_

  _She was shaking, although whether it was anger now rather than fear he couldn't say. “Liar.”_

 “ _Aoko-”_

 “ _You called me.”_

 “ _Yes! I thought maybe I could warn you-”_

 “ _Warn me? When would you have had time when you saw him going in? Why not just call out to him even if he had a gun? It's not like he wouldn't have been noticed_ waving a gun _in the middle of the street.”_

 “ _I didn't-”_

 “ _Stop lying Kaito!!”_

  _There was silence and Kaito's lips were tight. “Are we even safe here?” She asked looking towards the door._

  _He hoped so. He had the foresight to manage to send a quick message to his mother at home. Plus, he was fairly certain they'd gone over the house before the man saw which direction. With the gunshots it would be too brash even for them to start raiding nearby houses._

 “ _Mom's downstairs. I think she's already called the police- I uh- texted her.”_

  _At least Aoko seemed to accept that as the truth, although he supposed the television downstairs helped._

 “ _How did you know?” Sometimes she was too smart for her own good._

 “ _Aoko, I swear I didn't know. I just thought I'd check, and-” she pushed him away as he tried to catch her arm. Instead, it jolted his left side and caused the healing wound to snag in a way that had him crumpled against his bed for support. Damn, he'd been so certain it was almost healed, but the touch had been like a hot knife down to the bone._

“ _Kaito?”_

“ _I...it's fine,” he tried to grit his teeth against it, but daren't make eye contact with her._

_She wasn't an idiot._  

“ _Are you KID or not?! You swore to me you weren't. You tricked me into believing you couldn't be! Don't lie to me anymore Kaito- I might not be Hakuba but-”_

_He sagged against the bed at the tirade. Suddenly he was exhausted, too exhausted for words, still too scared to face the fact that he almost had lost his best friend and somehow there was no longer a way out._

_He held his shoulder looking away, “Don't ask questions you don't want the answer to.”_   
  


* * *

 

The chief's eyes flickered over her questioningly, but thankfully whatever skills Kaito had applied to rearrange her appearance seemed to pass the test.

That and the layer of dust and other KID paraphernalia that she was covered in.

Still, she was mostly angry, and looked it too with her gun in her hand and screaming orders at her cops. Homeland security and Interpol had been useless. The FBI at least appeared to have foresight when the shooting had started, and had the intelligence to inform her men of the possible explosion, which helped make the thing manageable.

That said it was going to be another year before they could fully restore the American Court Cafe, and the crunch of stained glass beneath her heels made her wince.

Her blood was strumming, nerves on end, she'd forgotten the rush and pure aggravation that went with a heist, as well as a hint of awe.

Still, this time her hatred was centered around the men with their bombs and their guns, and less on the glow that surrounded the thief in white.

 “Well?” she said, her gun resting in her hand against her side and a steady look to the chief.

“If you're waiting for me to say you were right—” 

“Which I was.”

“Nakamori!”

“Oh please. Be glad the FBI were here and seemed to know what they were getting into. I know they have more files then they're sharing about these monsters and this proves it,” she added, “It's obvious they weren't here for KID at all.”

“He got the gems.”

“And no one was injured out of the several hundred guests in attendance. We only lost a tenth of the museum, and one of the bombers is in custody.  I daresay it's a win.”

She slipped the safety on and lifted up her skirt to put the gun back in it's holster. The Chief made a rather unintelligible noise, but she just smiled and reached up to pull out the bobby pins holding up her hair.

“Right then. I'd give him a day or two tops before one of us gets the gem. I'd keep an eye out for ice cubes and pillows,” she warned, stretching slightly and slipping off her heels once she reached the end of the shattered glass.“I'll call if he sends them to me; see you Tuesday otherwise.”

“ _Tuesday?_ I need you to-”

“I did the heist. I stayed through the whole thing. We managed with a fair small amount of damage all things considered, you actually had KID in custody for a good five minutes before the shooting started, and I think Rossetti even managed to get some evidence in the interim. I'd say it's more of a win than you bargained for. I'm going home, getting some sleep, and taking an extended weekend. Call it a small vacation if you with. I never use my time so I should say I've earned it. “

“Nakamori!”

She turned and strolled towards the police tape stretched across the entrance. She was done, and it wasn't like she'd lose her job over it. She hadn't wanted the damn assignment in the first place, and he'd put her on it knowing what it would do to her.

She deserved at least a part of a night's sleep.

And if her finger ran across her lips, remembering a ghost of a kiss?

That was another thing entirely.

 

* * *

 

 

_It was a risk, but one Kaito had to take. Aoko wasn't talking to him now, and while he knew Nakamori was aware of the danger he couldn't be trusted to put  it to right._

  _He wore a low cap and an unassuming outfit that looked like nothing Kaito Kuroba would wear when he let himself into the Inspector's office late in the evening. When Nakamori returned he let out a curse and slammed the door shut, eyes centered on KID._

 “ _I could have you arrested right now.”_

 “ _You could,” said Kaito, playing with a pen he'd absconded from the inspector's desk. “But you won't. You're curious why I'm here.”_

_Of course the he was. The Inspector grunted and sat at his desk, almost ignoring the thief as he picked up his files and threw a glare at Kaito. It was almost more unnerving than usual heists, especially in a disguise so close to his true form._  

_But tonight he needed Ginzo Nakamori's guard down._

 “ _Has your daughter recovered? I understand there was a shake up some nights ago, I apologize for that by the way,” he said, tilting his hat._

 “ _She's fine,” Nakamori muttered brusquely. “I take it you weren't behind it?”_

_Kaito huffed, “Please Inspector, you know me better than that. Although, I am afraid her proximity at an earlier heist may had inadvertently made her a target. As she is your daughter? Doubly so.”_

_Nakamori's hand tightened on his paper, “Who are these men?”_

_Damn if he knew. If only he did. “I...” he cleared his throat, “I'm working on it.”_

_The fist slammed down on the desk and Kaito went flying off, landing on his feet with eyes on Nakamori. The Inspector looked furious, “Not good enough, KID.”_

  _Kaito forced his heart rate down and managed calmly, “No. No it isn't.”_

_There was silence and Nakamori sat once again. Kaito sat across, or rather perched in case the man did decide to go for him._

_Finally Kaito cleared his throat. “Inspector, I can't protect everyone against everything at all times. I can't protect you against an explosion at your residence if I'm asleep and they catch me with my flank open, nor can I protect your daughter at all hours to make sure she is not apprehended-”_  

“ _That's not your job.”_

“ _No. It's not. But I would, because you know as well as I that I would see no one gets hurt. Unfortunately, you can't either.”_

_The truth. The silence radiating off the inspector said he knew as much._

“ _Send her away.”_

_Nakamori looked up, frowning._

“ _She was already looking, or so I noticed,” Kaito said softly hoping the Inspector wouldn't dwell too much on the fact it meant he'd been snooping in their house. “She'll be going to university and I'm just asking you to evaluate your options. It is obvious she wishes to follow in your footsteps, so perhaps hint that the states might be for the better for that. I am aware what I am asking Inspector, but I do care about you and your daughter. If I thought we could bring these men down tomorrow it might be one thing, but I no longer have that hope. Your daughter is now a target.... we need to make her disappear.”_

_There was anger radiating from Nakamori but recognition as well. He must have thought about it too after all, “It isn't that easy KID. Aoko will do whatever she sits fit, no matter what I stay. I'm not going to ask how you knew she was looking at colleges in the states, but perhaps it will do you some good to know I have considered the same thing.”_

“ _And?”_

_The Inspector met his eyes firmly, “Why do you care so much? There are other ways, witness protection included, but why come out of your way to see to her safety?”_

 “ _She's your daughter Nakamori, of course I care.”_

 “ _Is that all?”_

  _Kaito felt strangely naked under the man's scrutiny._

 “ _Have you spoken to her about it?”_

  _Kaito scoffed, “As though she'd listen to me.”_

  _Nakamori's eyebrow lifted, “I think she might.”_

_Damn but this isn't how it was suppose to go. Kaito just wanted to leave now, but somehow found it impossible as Nakamori instead took out his pipe and began to light it. Kaito tskked, but the Inspector just smiled._

“ _KID how many years ago did we meet?”_

_Kaito scowled and was about to protest when the Inspector waved a hand, “Wrong question. Rather-- when we first met I couldn't help notice details, facts, how young we both were.” His arms crossed, “There's something about growing together that will tell a person quite a lot about them.”_

_Kaito felt panicky. What had he done wrong? What was it that gave him away. There must be something, “Indeed.”_  

“ _I've missed these talks,” said the Inspector through his smoke. “A shame they aren't with the same man.”_

  _Kaito fought not to flee, “I-”_

 “ _Don't. No need to give yourself away more than you have. No I am not one of those teenage detective's of yours, but I was a rookie cop after a new thief in my time. People, even if they stay ageless, grow-- I've known for some time the first KID must be dead. I knew when he disappeared nine, almost ten years ago now. I don't know how you've been dragged into the mess, but I'll accept what you tell me and pass it on to my daughter.”_

 “ _Inspector-”_

 “ _Don't get caught,” said Ginzo Nakamori leaning back. “And come visit me sometime. It's good to be back on speaking terms.”_

  _Which was news to Kaito. He knew his father had been friends with the man but not as, “I should be going.”_

 " _Mmm. Probably. School day tomorrow, and no doubt you have a target on your back as well. Your sire would never forgive me if something happened to you on my watch, and I've already failed spectacularly at that. Please pass any information you might glean about these men, it's not just your heist anymore KID, and it would be good for you to remember that.”_

  _Kaito was already half way to disappearing out of there. Damn Nakamori was terrifying alone. Maybe this is why he'd never tried this before._

 “ _I'll consider it.”_

 “ _Do. And I'll speak to my daughter.”_

 “ _That's all I'm asking.”_

  _Kaito set off a smoke bomb just as he heard Nakamori add, “And for the record, your father was a great man.”_

 

* * *

 

 

She nearly reached for her gun when she heard the tentative knock at her door. It was late, she was tired, and her nerves were on end.  

Indeed, of all the things she had expected, seeing Kaito standing hesitantly in her door, dark trousers, still wearing a blue button up with the top buttons loose, looking as if he'd just gotten out of a fight?

It sent a jolt through her.

It hadn't been the same earlier, with KID there and not Kaito. Even knowing, and seeing, and touching it had been something out of a haze or dream, a delusion only enhanced by a glass of champagne and the smoke screen of the heist.

This man at her door, eyes burning and a hard smile left her throat dry. She hadn't bothered to change out of the dress, still too hopped up on adrenaline, and trying to unwind with a glass of sparkling from her fridge. Indeed, even undone he looked ready for a night on the town, while she half wondered if her makeup wasn't fully beyond repair.

“Really Kaito? Are you even legally in the country?” she asked finally finding her voice. It wasn't what she wanted to say, but she didn't know what else _to_ say. He laughed and leaned against the frame, she saw the exhaustion in his body and wondered what it cost him to be there right now.

“I am. Although I suppose my trail has me not in New York. Most of my time is still spent on the west coast when I'm in the States, and technically I flew into Boston and took the train down using a different name.”

“Boston's.... nice” she said clearing her throat.

“Boston's boring,” he told her with a chuckle, “And the magic shows do poorly. I'd have more luck here if I could find a theatre. Dad had an act here for a while actually, and was a partial owner of a venue. It was sold a while ago, renamed too, but had a few fairly long running show if I remember correctly.”

He always had secrets, even now she could see there was more to the story but she was too tired to pry.

“I imagine you'd manage.”

“Probably.”

They were close enough to feel each other's body heat, and she could feel the tension playing between them. She looked up, and saw him staring down at her with the same scrutiny of some priceless gem for him to study. Her breath caught and a moment later she found his arms around her and she was kicking the door shut, and he had her back against the wall of her apartment.

Her arms were around his neck, and she let herself drown in the kiss as he continued like a man dying for the loss of air, and he'd just found the source.

His hand swept down, her leg wrapped up, she let out a cry when his lips drew back to nip at her neck hard. Idiot. How possessive did he have to be anyway? Or couldn't he see she lived in the equivalent of a bachelor pad?

She pushed back, kissing him again, leading him back until his knees reached the couch and she straddled him on the cushions. She let her hips grind against the hardness she felt in his trousers, pleased at the groan she elicited from the man, and the way his head threw back as she repeated the action. His hands had moved to run along her thighs, and she was thankful she'd never had time to remove the garters and stockings as she felt his fingers slide beneath them and freeze at the tops.

She pressed her hand on top of his, letting him roll them down.

The dress was gone. His shirt somewhere in the pile too, and trousers open. Before she could pull them down he had slid past her and she felt her underwear give way as kisses were pressed along her abdomen, her thigh, her…

She groaned as his fingers spread her and the look on his face as he took in her curves, her muscles, and even the delicate touch of his lips over her scars...

She froze in mortification when tears came.

“Aoko?” his voice sounded nearly as splintered as she must look. God what a fool she was.

“I....”

Instead she felt his arms pull her to him. Extracting themselves from their activities, and instead cradling her in comfort. There was a press of lips against the top of her head, thumb making gentle circles on her back, and she found herself held against him.

It was all suddenly too much.

“I...”

“I know.”

 

* * *

 

_The phone rang twice before he picked it up._

_Aoko's number._

_Three am._

_He barely noticed as it bit into his fingers, the words still playing over his mind, “Kaito... I... They... They said my father...”_

 

* * *

 

She awoke, wrapped in a robe and warm under a layer of blankets. She blinked, the sunlight pouring through a crack in her curtains, her mind rushing through _what_ had occurred the night before when it came flooding back.

KID.

Kaito.

Crying herself to sleep in his arms.

He must have carried her to her bedroom, although while she was nude under her robe she was fairly certain they didn’t…

“Kaito,” she murmured into the pillow.

Still....

Would he come back? Had he left a number or address? Had that been the opportunity and she lost it just like everything else?

Untangling herself from her covers she pulled the robe closer around her and opened her door. She heard a noise in her kitchen, and it took several moments before she was able to register Kaito peering back at her holding a cup, “I have the kettle on. Would you like tea or coffee?”

He looked like he'd slept little, and his hair was in worse condition than normal. There were faint circles under his eyes, and his trousers hung loose at his waist with his shirt open and sleeves rolled up.

“Tea.”

She knew she should help, or ask why he was still there. Ask how he’d known where she stored her tea or coffee or had he spent the better part of the morning looking. She saw the throw on her couch folded carefully at the end and her pillows looked worn in. He'd stayed there all night after a heist, ridiculous, her couch wasn't that comfortable.

“Sounds good.”

She sat down feeling strange and uncertain, up until a warm mug was pressed between her fingers and she looked up into equally warm blue eyes 

Worried blue eyes.

“Aoko?”

“Sorry. Not awake yet,” she managed taking the mug. “You slept here all night?”

He shifted and she watched his poker face fall back into place, “I was worried. I'm sorry- I would have asked, but I didn't wish to wake you and--”

“It's... it's fine Kaito.”

Sunlight played across his face and she wanted to laugh. Of course spring would choose to arrive _now_. Now as he stood there with a look of disbelief and fear. Stood their waiting for the ax to fall.

She reached up placing a hand on his arm and shifting so he could sit next to her. He obliged as she leaned in, forcing him to lift his arm around her as she pressed her face into his shoulder.

He released a breath.

She forgot about the tea.

“How long are you here?” It was viscerally painful to ask, having him there and for a glimmer a moment like no time had passed at all when everything else seemed to be falling to hell around her.

She watched his face clam up again, “I'm not sure. I had initially planned no more than a week-”

“Initially?”

“I hadn't planned to get in your way, and thought it best to be here as little as I could.”

“Ah.” 

“I was considering extending that now. Plenty of opportunities for a young magician to take advantage of while on the town. Might as well toss my hat in the ring and enjoy the sights too... if- that's if you didn't mind.”

She let out a small, irritable breath. Leave it to Kaito to ask absurd questions like that.

"I'm not your mother.”

His thumb ran over her wrist, delicate circles along her skin that left shivers up and down her arm, “No. But I do care about your opinion. It's your city, given the option I would have given you more warning before I arrived.” She could tell there was something else he wanted to say. Something else on the tip of his lips.

“But?”

“I'm a coward.”

There seemed to be a hint of defeat in his voice, frustration, that made her catch his hand and tighten on it. “'I'm not certain I believe that.”

He tossed his head back, and the laugh that exploded was like nothing she'd ever heard from him before. She almost pulled away, but something drew her closer, caused her to hold him tighter like a lightening rod or a grounding force trying to pull him back to earth.

“Oh trust me. When it comes to anything important. I'm terrified.”

His eyes settled on hers, and she felt almost nude under his gaze as she forced herself to keep it and bite her lip firmly.

“What do you want then?”

“I-”

Her phone rang.  
  


* * *

 

_He wore a black dress shirt under a black suit. His hair was pushed back, unusually neat, and he might have been a different man entirely-- which was in this case, the point._

_Hakuba found him there, standing in the cold, staring down at the marker as though he would have the power to make it go away. If he willed enough perhaps it wouldn't be true, and he would have been able to do something different._

_Keep another father alive._

_Damn if that wasn't two children who lost their fathers to the monster called Snake, and God knew how many others._

“ _Kuroba this will get you nowhere,” the detective's voice was sharp behind him. “Come inside before you get ill and I have to explain to Aoko-chan why we'll be burying her best friend as well.”_  

_A bleak comfort, “Aoko doesn't want to see me.”_

“ _Kuroba, Aoko needs you right now. Get your head out of your ass and-”_

“ _She_ knows _Hakuba,” the words tumbled over his lips hatefully. “She knows alright!? She's known for weeks, and now she knows it's my fault her father's dead. Dammit, I am the last person Aoko wants here right now.”_

_True, she'd called him when it had happened, but she hadn't known the whys then. She hadn't realised the men who were involved, or the demands they had made. Hadn't known that half the precinct went up in flames as Nakamori Ginzo refused, even at the last,  to hand over any documents concerning the Kaitou KID heists._

_He'd been the only one killed though._

_57 injured. One casualty._

_There was no mistaking a shot between the eyes._

“ _Kuroba-”_

“ _What can I say Hakuba?” His voice was cold as he fought to keep his poker face in check. “The man was like a father to me as well, and I let him die. Goddammit.”_

_The detective stood behind him, this time silent._

“ _She needs to leave,” Kaito finally managed. “I-- make sure she picks a university as far from here as she can get. Marry her and pack her off to London if that's what it takes, but she has to get out of here. There's nothing holding her here now, and I plan to stage a heist in Shanghai or Hong Kong by next week. It might hold them off for a while, but they'll be after her next. I mean it Hakuba.”_

“ _Tell her yourself.”_

“ _Kaito?”_

_Kaito swerved, seeing the shivering figure in black, standing amidst the soft white powder. Her face was puffy, eyes red, and her hair a tangled mess. She was shaking, and he gripped his coat to keep himself from removing it, even as Hakuba let out a sigh and wrapped his inverness around her shoulders._

“ _I'll be inside,” said the detective disappearing into the now falling snow._

_Except that left Kaito alone with her at her father's grave. A small, broken woman, where the week before there had been a vibrant child ready to take the world. Kaito felt a thousand years old, and without a word of comfort that he could give her._

_She took a step towards him, her face a mask of a thousand emotions, and Kaito winced._

“ _Don't.”_

“ _Kaito you-”_

“ _This is_ my _fault” he said fiercely. “Your father is dead because of me. How can you even stand to speak to me?” God she would be next, it would be her in the ground and he would break into a thousand pieces and no amount of training could hold him together._

“ _You didn't shoot him.”_

“ _I'm KID.”_

“ _I know.”_

_She was still trembling and her eyes looked to the marker and he saw her crumple. He managed to catch her before she fell to the ground, sobs wracking into his jacket, while he slid his hand over her hair trying to calm her._

_He still couldn't find the words. Bubbles of “I'm sorry” and “Please forgive me” were lost in her hair as they both held each other like children. The snow stung their cheeks and hands, but Kaito kept himself around her bearing the worst brunt of the oncoming storm._

“ _Why?” she said hoarsely. “Why did he have to die Kaito?”_

_Kaito closed his eyes, but finally forced himself to find the world's. He kept his arms around her as he forced his voice to make the worlds._

“ _They killed my father too.”_

_It wasn't fair, and he knew what she'd want to do but he couldn't. She buried her face back into his jacket and they both fought for air that wouldn't quite make it to their lungs._

“ _They want to kill you,” he said finally. “They think. God I don't even know what they think anymore, but if you stay in Japan they will. It's not just a might… they will. Even if I never let you out of mine or Hakuba sight eventually they'd find a way. These men…. I can't even tell you everything because it will just compound you more.”_

“ _And what about you!?”_

“ _They need KID. They need me to find something. They'll kill me, but only once they know I have the gem they want. Aoko I know it's not fair but--”_

“ _NYU accepted me. With a scholarship.”_

_He froze and looked down. Aoko had gone still in his arms, “I… I planned to accept. Dad had asked me to, before he… and I thought...”_

_New York. Not even on the west coast, and thousands of miles from Las Vegas as well. A city she could fall into a crowd and disappear._

“ _Yes. Yes that's- I mean do what you want Aoko but--”_

“ _What about you?”_

“ _Me? Same as always I suppose. I'll travel more, train, work on putting on a magic show...” he forced a smile as he reached for a lock of her hair, “Make sure it's nowhere near New York.”_

“ _Kai-”_

“ _I swear Aoko. I won't do this to you again. You deserve more than having your life led by the nose from a crummy thief. I'll stay away, and expect to see you chasing down criminals in five and ten years. Who knows? Maybe by then KID will be retired.”_

_Her lips were taut and there was still a sense of anger around her. Kaito couldn't blame her as he threaded his fingers through hers, feeling every inch of the sinner he was._

“ _Is this goodbye?”_

_He cheated._

_The sleeping gas was just enough, combined with her exhaustion, to have her drop in his arms with ease. He hefted her weight against his chest, and walked back to the house where Hakuba awaited._

“ _What did you-”_

“ _Take care of her for me will you?” He couldn't tarry, he didn't have a moment. Thank god he already had a bag packed, and he'd just take a one way ticket anywhere. “Make sure she makes it out of here alive?”_

“ _Kuroba-”_

“ _Good bye Hakuba.”_

 

* * *

 

_Five PM. Dress for an evening out._

_\--1412_

She stare down at the text rubbing her forehead. 

_What are you doing signing your texts 1412?!_

She immediately deleted his text as a ping went off and she drew out her phone.

A picture of a KID doodle smiled back at her and she nearly threw the phone.

She was going to murder him.

There were a thousand questions that she had. Why he was there at all? Why bother her? Hadn't they realised it was never going to work? Why start something that wouldn't last?

She had thought he'd already be on a plane out of New York by now, not standing in her door frame in a designer suit, hair as messy as ever and an uneasy smile on his face. His eyes flickered over the wine dark dress she'd found, silk and satin, with a low back and drape in the front. She'd stood for the better part of an hour before she selected it, but the crimson dress had looked good on her and she so rarely had cause.

She also remembered the way his fingers had played across her back the night of the heist.  
  
The way his eyes watched her now, the look and the way he smiled back uncertainly. 

She didn't expect him to lean forward, catch her waist, and press his lips against hers. It was quick, chaste, and only a moment although she caught her arm against him as well and looked up with a smile. 

“Hello,” she said hoarsely. 

“Hello. May I come in?” 

A ridiculous question, but one she nodded, blushing at her rudeness. “Yes. Of course. Give me a moment to gather my things and I'll be ready.” 

She should have hit him for that, or slapped him, or something of equal warning, but it was impossible with how natural the kiss had come. Indeed, she swore he even had a gentle brush of red along his cheeks as he busied himself looking at her books. 

She went to fetch her purse and jacket, and turned to see him plucking roses from thin air to fill a vase that had appeared from who knew where. It was certainly more a feat than the morning’s coffee. 

She laughed shaking her head in wonder, “Show off.” 

“I aim to please,” he said with a bow, holding out a single white rose to her.

She took it, turning it in her fingers before slipping it in the center of the dozen red ones. “Thank you Kaito." 

Yes. A date. There was nothing else it could possible be. Her heart was pounding in her chest, ridiculous after what had transpired the night before, but something else this time. That had been lust, the heat of the moment, the fury and passion of a moment that left her breathless and spinning and furious.

That had been two people spinning out of control, meeting in the little hours of the night when there no longer seemed to be anything left to lose. 

This implied something else, something she had wanted when she was eighteen and flying halfway across the world. 

She wondered what would happen if the Chief or someone else saw her with him. She knew he was on a watch list, even if there wasn't proof against him. She also knew she couldn't precisely get in trouble for it but- 

Watching him arrange roses she found she didn't care.

“You look beautiful,” he said as she watched his eyes rake over her. they dipped over her neckline and down her dress. 

“You clean up nicely yourself,” she managed clearing her throat. “So are we going then? You didn't say what precisely, but I had rather gathered that was the idea.” 

“Tickets to the _King and I_ with dinner reservations across the street before hand. I thought we could make a night of it, and it seemed a shame not see a Broadway show while I was in town.” 

“How on earth did you get tickets to the _King and I?”_  She had wanted to see it before it closed, but it was impossible to find the time with work and then the tickets had proven impossible to get after it won at the Tonys.

“I have a connection to one of the actor's,” he told her winking. Of course he’d be smug about it. “His manager works with mine occasionally, and I was told if I was in town while he was finishing up the run...” 

“Of course you know him. As long as you didn’t steal them.”

“You wound me my lady,” he offered her his arm, still a strange hesitance between them.

She laughed and took it as she allowed him to lead her away.

Dinner was a lurid affair, with platters of oysters and seafood and a bottle of champagne that tasted sweet and left her only slightly light headed in a way that was pleasant rather than inebriating. There were candles, and a private alcove where they could talk and laugh and separate themselves from the dull roar of the restaurant. His eyes never left her face, as he told her stories from the most recent cities he visited, and outrageous shows that she wasn't sure how much was to be believe.

The only give away that he was as nervous as she felt was the flick of fingers that caused silverware, coins, and a salt and pepper set to disappear and reappear occasionally. Busy hands that she finally caught with own when he pulled out four colored scarfs from midair rather than his napkin.

“If you do anymore tricks you're likely to set off a pack of crackers,” she teased as he folded the scarves and tucked them away sheepishly.

“Didn't bring them this round. Thought it was probably a hazard in someone else's theatre,” his eyes were laughing though.

“Probably.”

If they walked slightly closer together after dinner she would blame the wine and the cool wind from the north. The rain and slush that had barraged them for days on end had finally quieted earlier in the week, but the wind was still billowing and allowed Aoko to be wrapped in his arms.

The sun had set, and from above she could almost catch a glimpse of stars from behind the city lights. People were flooding up the steps of Lincoln Center, dressed in their furs and capes for the opera, and diamonds and dresses for the theatre and ballet. The fountain was full blast, dancing through the lights, as children and visitors laughed and took pictures in front of the spray.

They wound their way through the crowds and around the corner to the ledges in front of reflecting pool. They sat near the edge, surprised at the quiet as couples made their way past them into the theatre, or art students slipping out onto the plaza from Julliard.

“Come here often?” he asked softly.

“Really Kaito?”

His eyes were carefully settled on her face, and for a moment she saw a shadow of the boy she knew as a child, “It's a fair question. You live close enough-- I was all ready to fetch a horse and carriage, but there was hardly a need when you're only a few blocks away.”

“Eighty-first isn't really that close,” although the accusation was true. She walked by Lincoln Center hundreds of times, but so rarely had the time to simply stop.

“We'll take one back then.” His hand wrapped around hers and she leaned into his chest. She wondered what this would mean, after the night ended. Would he still be there? Would he stay? Could he stay?

“Kaito-”

He stared at the lights reflected on the water. His eyes steady on the soft ripples where the wind touched the edges. “Not yet Aoko. Let's just take tonight, alright?”

She kissed him a moment later, a soft press of lips that relaxed the worried lines that had appeared, and eased the tension that had grown in his shoulders over her unspoken question. She felt her own smile slip as well. She buried her face into the crook of his neck to keep her mind at bay, and his arm settled around her waist as they watched others head in.

It was nearly Seven-fifty five, the last patrons were dwindling, and he took her hand and led her into the theater.

They were led down the stairs and into the orchestra section. Center row seats overlooking the stage, close enough to count the hairs of the conductor's head if she had chosen to do so. Kaito slipped off her coat, and Aoko leaned against him as he threw a passing glance at his playbill while hers was abandoned in favor of observing the stage.

The lights went down, the music soared, and she lost herself as the curtain's unfurled and ship sailed towards the audience.

How simple it was to forget, for a bit, the scenario she had been thrust in. How easy, even as she watched one young actress whisper illicit vows to her lover. How she could just fall into the play, and ignore the rest of the world for a few short hours.

But then came the haunting chords, and the lead ( _Kelli something. Kaito had mocked her for not knowing the name)_ broke into another song, this one entirely different from the upbeat and rather frivolous tunes from before. She felt Kaito's hand tighten on hers.

“ _Be brave young lovers and follow your star, Be brave and faithful and true...”_  
  
The reflection and lights blurred as she refused to allow the tears to fall that filled her eyes. Under her hand she could feel his pulse fluttering, while her own heart fought its way from her chest.

She could see the thousands of missed opportunities and reasons why this could never work.

Ever.

_“Cling very close to each other tonight… I’ve been in love like you.”_

The act ended and Aoko looked up to see Kaito starting to stand.

“Wine?”

“More champagne I think,” she answered.

She didn't release his hand as he led her into the foyer and ordered them two glasses, clinking as she took it.

“Thank you.”

“Of course,” he said with a tilt of his head that was more KID than Kaito.

They didn't speak as they sipped their champagne, her eyes were drawn through the glass windows of the lobby, and the spot they had been sitting before. The moon danced and rippled in the reflecting pool, and for a moment she felt like Tuptim-- trapped by convention and her position in life-- unable to even take a walk with the man she loved in the daylight.

Their drinks were mostly forgotten as she looked up and felt him lean down pressing a kiss to her cheek. “Thank you. For tonight.”

“It's not over yet Kaito, we have an entire second act. You had better not have any intentions of running off mid-show.”

“Of course not.”

“Good. I’d hate to be forced to put out a warrant for you.”

She found herself grinning at the expression on his face.

“You wouldn’t.”

“Run away again and I might.”

The second act left her more bereft than the first. It was beautiful, marvelous, everything a Broadway show should be, and for just a moment she could see Kaito and herself swirling across a ballroom floor- eyes caught on each other, and the shift of friendship to... something else. Something that had already happened, but that was still tentative and dangerous and left her wondering. 

Too many what ifs.

His arm was around her as she bit back the tears, and suddenly the show was over and she was on her feet and she could feel the warmth of Kaito against her as her cries joined in the others of the audience.

So many what ifs.

 

* * *

 

 

“ _Passengers please assure your seats are in an upright position, and all mobile and electrical devices are turned off and stowed away…”_

_Kaito glanced once more at the photo his mother had sent him._

_Aoko had a smile, holding her diploma and looking at the camera. It didn’t quite meet her eyes, but it was something at least._

_He knew his mother forgave him, although Kaito wished he could have stayed through graduation, but… there were things to be done and jobs to do._

_In another time or place he’d be there next to Aoko, smiles on both their faces, and ready to take off for university together._

_Instead-_

_“Sir? I need you to put away your phone until after take off.”_

_He flashed the flight attendant a smile and slipped it into his pocket, “Sorry ma’am. Won’t happen again.”_

_He’d manage._  

_He always did._

_Maybe with time, he might even forget._

 

* * *

 

If he was courting her she wished she knew where it was going.

They’d stayed up talking the night before, Aoko making coffee this time and Kaito exploring her apartment with all the decorum of a five year old. The hours had dwindled, and the sun had jut begun to rise, and both of them were still drunk on each other’s company and use to nights without sleep.

Still dressed for the theatre, Aoko protested all ten blocks, as a far more dishevelled Kaito dragged her to a mostly empty _Levain_ Bakery, and proceeded to buy one of everything and two tall coffees.

“It was really unnecessary to buy that many cookies before eight o’clock,” she said stretching out on the rock he’d found them in the park. Stretching over the pond, Aoko admitted it did have one of the best views of the city, even if it was still a tad cold to be lounging on in the wee hours of the morning.

Reading her mind Kaito procured a blanket from only God knew where, and wrapped it around them.  

“They’re suppose to have the best cookies in New York. I wasn’t going to wait until it was too late. I got breakfast too,” he was nibbling on a _bouchon_ instead and handed it to Aoko for a bite. 

She rolled her eyes and took a nibble of the donut, her mouth flooded with raspberry and sugar.

“Oh.”

“Exactly.”

They sat like that, curled in the crisp spring air, and watched the sun come up over the Manhattan skyline. It was nearly noon before they went back to apartment, giggling like school children, and tripping through central park in their evening wear as tourists eyed them from afar.  
  
They collapsed, fully dressed into bed, sleeping until the sun had gone down, and woke starving. 

“Food?”

Kaito had helped himself to her shower, after she’d left him stretched out on her sheets as she cleaned up herself. She heard him call from the bathroom and caught a peek of the towel wrapped precariously around his waist. He caught the look and winked before shutting the door, and leaving her to go back to fighting her hair on her bed.

Her offers to cook had been pushed away, and the thousand restaurants along Columbus avenue were argued against as they walked past the twinkling shops. Too crowded. Too overpriced. Too empty.

When they took a turn for the park she laughed and shook her head, “Kaito I’m not dressed for something like Tavern on the Green.”

He leaned forward catching her lips and muffled her protests, “Let’s just try it shall we?”

Strains of jazz travelled from an open window of the grill room, drawing past them in the light bedecked trees. She leaned in for a second kiss, drowning in everything that was Kaito, letting the night, the lights,the shadows that played across them, and the soft sound of motors just a few steps away play past her senses. 

She could stay like that forever, that exact moment, exploring his lips, his mouth, the feeling of him pressed against her body and the cool stones against her back as she pulled him towards the wall.

One kiss into two, into more, with no sense of caring that she _never_ did this.

“Food,” he said pressing his forehead against hers. “Cookies hardly make a meal, and the band only plays until eleven I think.”

There was music, and dancing, and a lit fireplace in the corner. She felt relieved when he lead her to the side room rather than the main dining. Their table was by the fire, and their drinks strong and sweet. The food was outrageous, but Kaito just laughed and informed her they were on vacation before ordering for them both as she glared at the prices.

When the band started back up she was only half surprised to see him stand and hold a hand out to her.

“I can't Kaito! I wouldn't even know where to-”

“Just watch me. Don't worry about your feet-- they'll move on their own,” she was swept to her feet as he led her to the floor. “Trust me.”

She doubted it, but the drinks and lights and music had caught her in it’s thrall. Somehow she managed not to malign his toes as he spun her out onto the small dance floor.

“Kaito, what are we doing-” she managed at last, as he pulled her cheek to cheek and she could feel his breath against her neck.

“Dancing,” he teased as he turned her in his arms.

“That's not what I mean.”

Her feet followed his, and his arms kept a firm hold on her owns. They probably weren’t the most graceful couple, but she was surprised to find that she was able to move to the music, and the soft crooning made it simple to forget they were dancing at all.

She rested carefully in his hold as their feet made their way around the floor. He said nothing, but for a moment she thought she felt him shake, a shiver that ran up her arm and a look in his eyes that she couldn't escape from.

_I love him_.

The thought ran through her head unassisted, and she found her cheek pressed firmly against his as the music sped up and he brought them in a series of dizzying turns.

She couldn’t breath, and she wanted to laugh or cry or both, but settled for pushing the thought away, and just having caught him for a moment.

The music had stopped and so had they. They returned to their seats and the food had arrived. Both of them were silent as they ate, and she could feel Kaito’s eyes burning into her.

One more round of drinks as the band finished their set. Another dance, where neither of them spoke, but every inch of their bodies aflame as he spun her again, and again to the melodies.

The music finished, and Kaito picked up their coats and led them into dark cover of the park, away from the bright lights of Central Park West.

“We shouldn't be walking here this late,” she kept her tone light as she looked up, surprised to see a handful of stars.

“I'm fairly certain I can manage any would be muggers,” there was a bit of a laugh, and a type of hardness to his face that left her yearning to ask what had become of him these last ten years.

The ease he had amongst guns and danger and mischief that left him so assured nothing could possibly harm him.

When he pulled her against him, away from the faint light of the lamps, she wondered if they’d make it home at all.

“I’m not getting arrest for indecency five blocks from my apartment,” she finally murmured against his lips.

“Could be fun,” he said, his fingers running over the open buttons of her blouse. 

“Kaito-” she managed, although unwilling to let go just yet as his hands slipped inside the opening to tighten around one of her breasts. She muffled a cry by biting into his neck, and felt the shift of his hips hard against her.

Part of her knew no one would stumble into them, hidden away from the main paths and only watched by the glimmer of the night sky.

Another thought of the mortification if an officer she knew found her half dressed, laid out in the cool grass of the park after hours with a man who had been previously under investigation as KID.

He nimbly re-buttoned her shirt, his lips exploring the crease of her neck, as she tried to remind herself that it was cold, and her apartment just around the corner, and what the headline of the Post would read if she was caught.

“Nightcap?” She finally amended. “At mine of course.”

“Should I?”

“You should.”

To hell with the questions they both knew would be there come morning.

The moment the door closed, their coats dropped, and she found herself against the door, arms around him with his lips on her neck. She frantically worked at the buttons of his shirt, and his hands explored the low ridge of her skirt. She murmured something about the bedroom, and a moment later she was in his arms being carried there, her face buried into his neck before he gently let her down at the foot of the bed.

His lips ran over the back of her neck as his fingers made work of the zipper and buttons. The silk puddled to the floor, and his hands wrapped around her waist.

“God you're beautiful.”

“You never use to say that,” she managed through a hoarse voice. “You use to think I looked like a boy.”

He laughed, turning her and his eyes searching her soft curves and carefully structured muscles from her work on the force. “I lied.”

“You were rather forceful.”

“I lie well.”

He pushed her back with one hand, his other pinning her against the bed. His lips slipped down to her breasts and his own shirt was discarded.

She cried out as fingers explored her skin, caressed her breasts, and his mouth sought the points he knew to be most sensative.

To hell with morning.

For now they had the night.

Every moment as she watched his toned body slip from his trousers. As she took in the muscles and felt him hard against her as he opened her up first, with fingers and mouth.

When her hand finally found him, she watched the ecstasy slip over his face, her own fingers running over the thick girth and ridges she found there. Unsurprised that of course his cock would be as graceful and delicate as the rest of him.

She found herself ontop of him, guiding herself down as Kaito yelled her name over and over, until she found their positions switched and she was being fucked into the matress until she could no longer what was up or down or how long time passed.

Until it was his name on her lips like a litany of blessings that she prayed would never stop.

And then soft caresses, and murmurs, and another round that consisted of him taking her apart only to put her back together again. This time slipping inside of her until they were one, and she clung to him as they both came yelling their names and for once Aoko not caring what the neighbours thought.

She could feel him pulsing inside her, feel his arms tight around her as her own fingers dug into his back. She buried her face against his neck, to wrap herself in Kaito, Kaito, _Kaito._

They had the night.

It would never be enough.

 

* * *

 

_London._  

_Summer meant the windows remained open in any attempt to cool off the stifling air of the Hakuba family manor, and a perfect ledge for a thief to balance on after a particularly trying heist._

_He hadn't meant to, but the estate was on the way back from the theft and the last months had wrecked havoc on Kaito's body. Tonight, the minor injuries had done more than a gunshot wound to the chest and it was all he could do not to crash in the detective's rose garden. Once he'd landed, his whole body quivered and he slipped to the floor, back against the window, and holding the night's gem in his fist as he let his eyes shut for just a moment._

_When Hakuba returned home to find him half asleep, it nearly looked like a scene from Peter Pan._

_Kaito's eyes flew open, reflecting the light of the gem, as he turned it in his fingers and caused it to sparkle. The Cerulean Butterfly, a priceless blue diamond with a myth behind it as thick as any fairytale._

“ _I should have told her sooner.”_

_The words vibrated across the room, and managed to unsettle the detective. Kaito still wasn't certain what had drawn him to the detective's home that not, surely not initially a confession, but the exhaustion from endless heists had worn and suddenly he was just tired._

_Tired of it all._

“ _What?” Hakuba said, shutting his door quietly to turn his gaze on the thief, and all thoughts of reaching for his cuffs or cell phone vanishing._

“ _Aoko. I should have told her, ages ago, about KID, the heists, why she needed to stay away-” he paused letting the words sink in, “Maybe Nakamori wouldn't be dead.”_

_Ah of course._

“ _Is it what you’re looking for?” asked Hakuba as he shed his suit jacket and tie. There was a look of understanding in his eyes, and Kaito saw the detective glance to the calendar. Of course he would remember the date, even if the man hadn't been there at the time._

_Kaito felt almost irked as he watched the detective move to a cabinet for brandy rather than cuffs. Belated he realized he'd almost wanted the other man to arrest him._

“ _No,” he twisted it in his fingers before meeting the Detective’s eyes, “Never is.”_

_It was all he could do to keep his poker face from shattering. Hakuba seemed to notice since he poured a tumbler and stepped over to push it into the thief's free hand. “I don’t precisely know what you are looking for, and frankly I abhor the way you are going about looking for the damn thing, but if there is one thing I’m certain of Kuroba it’s that you’ll find it.”_

_Kaito let out a hoarse laugh and his knuckles turned white as his fingers grasped the drink, “I’m not Kuroba.”_

_Hakuba rolled his eyes and reached for his own glass to take a deep drink, “Of course you’re not.”_

_The gem disappeared from his finger’s and he looked up to meet Hakuba’s eyes, “I really did love her.” His voice was soft, barely audible, and he downed the drink in one go after he said it. “I still do Hakuba. Fuck it, I loved Nakamori like a second father, even as much time as we spent antagonising each other. I'm almost damn sure he knew who I was from the get go, and I just-”_

“ _No need to state the obvious,” Hakuba told him sharply. “Honestly, a blind man would have been able to tell that much, and there is no doubt in my mind that she was quite aware of that fact. Furthermore, I thought we had established you are not Kaito Kuroba?”_

_The empty glass fell to the ground and Kaito covered his face with one gloved hand. He felt the monocle slip off and for once didn't give a damn as he set it down next to him trying to keep it together. He hadn't cried since his own father had died, he'd had to stay cool during Nakamori's funeral. Even leaving her, leaving everyone, he'd managed to keep it all behind the poker face._

_Five years running. Months of sleepless nights, and an anniversary, and a glimpse of Aoko's picture and...._

_He heard Hakuba pour a second round._

_The whole scenario was absurd._

_And why hadn't Hakuba put him in cuffs already?_

_Instead, he felt the Detective take his monocle as well as the hat that had landed next to him and set them on the table. He refilled glass was brought to his hand, and he took a sip half wondering if it was poisoned or at least drugged. Likely, he felt something other than the effects of alcohol. A hand was offered down to him and somewhat against his will he was being wrenched from the floor._

“ _Come away from the sill at least. No point in being spotted by some chance pedestrian, I have a feeling there would be several questions neither of us would wish to answer.” Kuroba lifted his head, and Hakuba looked only slightly startled by the redness Kaito was certain surrounded his eyes._

“ _I should go.”_

_He nearly tripped trying to get away. Drugged. Not strongly, and more likely some sort of sedative. Damn detective._

“ _You should get some sleep,” said Hakuba, his lips in a firm line, “And you'd never have made it back to wherever you are staying even if I hadn't drugged your brandy.”_

_Kaito wondered if the whole world was going stark raving mad._

“ _You’ll arrest me in the morning,” managed Kaito, already dead on his feet._

“ _Possibly. But that is of course presuming I wake up first, which I somehow doubt. As such you should be perfectly safe for several hours. Now must I drug you with something stronger or will you please get some rest?” The detective sighed and crossed the room to reach for his dressing gown as Kaito stared vacantly at the bed._

_Heists? Fine. Gunmen? Could be dealt with. But damn if the detective's bed didn't terrify him._

_Hakuba sighed as he rested his hand against the wall and watched Kaito, “I have work regardless, so take the bloody bed. Also, I wouldn’t sleep with all your gear if I were you, I'd rather not return to find my sheets pink.”_

_Kaito silently unhooked his cloak and let it fall next to the bed. Next, he stripped off his jacket, clearly exhausted, before pausing to nod in Hakuba’s direction. Hakuba turned to go back to his office and, surprisingly, leaving Kaito in peace._

“ _Hakuba?”_

_Hakuba froze._

_Thanks.”_

 

* * *

 

The soft light of early morning was filtering in the window when she awoke to the soft murmur of “ _I love you.”_ So faint she nearly thought she was dreaming, until she felt the warm arms and pressure of his back against hers.

She turned, sleepily, fluttering her eyes open to see Kaito look at her with a faint hint of surprise. Her throat caught at the way his face was open and he watched her with absolute sincerity.

"Do you?”

She saw his mask crack and he looked away, “You were suppose to be sleeping.”

“I was. I woke up. “

He rested back on his elbows and finally after a moment sighed, “You have to ask?”

“I-” she was awake now, and sharp at the look he'd given her. “It's been so many years Kaito. How should I be certain of anything. Why should I even be in the running?”

He laughed a little at that but threaded his fingers in her hair and wrapped them around his knuckles before pressing his lips to the lock, “How could anyone compare? Yes there are more beautiful women, or handsome men. Yes there are interesting people, and maybe more in tune to whatever life I've landed myself in but-”

She couldn't breath.

“Yes?”

He exhaled, “When I first met you. When I was barely seven? Eight? I remember seeing you and thinking you were so pretty and so sad. I remember thinking, in the ridiculous way children do, that you were the girl I wanted to grow up and marry and that I would make sure you would never cry again. Obviously, I failed spectacularly, and that eight year old part of me is furious that I should be the one to make you cry more times than not but...”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead, “It didn't go away. I didn't grow out of it. I mean, we became friends and we had our fights and the things that boys and girls do in school when it's no longer cool to be in love with someone. I- I was big headed enough to just know you'd always be there, and it didn't matter then, but obviously I'd marry you and _obviously_ you'd love me back. It wasn't until later in high school, ten years of just knowing, with a child’s irrationality, you were the only person I ever wanted to share my life with, that KID happened.”

“Kaito.”

His breath caught, “Please. Let me... “

She reached out stroking a lock of his hair, “Fine.”

“Even then Aoko, _even then,_ I don't think I understood the repercussions. I just dove into the mess. I had to fix the problem, had to find out if Dad was alive, had to finish the work that killed him and save the world. It was romantic, marvelous, finally something exciting. Flying was like discovering you’re missing a limb that you weren't aware you had. Heists exhausted me, but gave me something new in my life. And still I thought “It's only temporary,” “Only for a while,” “It will end,” “Aoko doesn't have to know.’”

He shook his head, “I was wrong, I was young, and I _still_ believed that I could get the girl at the end. KID would retire, and we'd graduate, and I would sweep you off your feet in such a way you _couldn't_ say no. After all, I knew all your likes and dislikes just as you knew mine. I took it all for granted, and without showing or telling you I- love isn't even a proper word for it.”

She'd pulled away during the monologue, her lips parted so she could breathe. Her eyes never looked away from his face, even as he looked almost everywhere, _but_ at her.

“And then those last heists happened,” his shoulders slumped. “I... it was before those really. Even when _They_ showed up with their guns I could manage, but after _Kaitou Corbeau_ it became less of a game. I... that isn't my secret to tell, but it began putting things in perspective and the heists after grew more and more dangerous and all I wanted was for them to end and for us to be a normal High School couple-- just Aoko and Kaito-- and suddenly that wasn't an option but I tried. I tried up until I realised that if you stayed we might never have the chance to get married or even go on a proper date because you might get killed too.”

He was calm, too calm suddenly and Aoko pulled herself out of her own mixture of emotions to take his hands, “I'm still here Kaito. No one killed me.”

He nodded silently.

“And..still?”

He laughed slightly, “It's ridiculous isn't it? I did _try._ Once your father...” He trailed off. “I realised I could never see you again. I realised you were an ocean away and that's where you needed to be. Thousands of miles and I honestly I wasn't sure if it would work, but it did. They seemed to buy the argument I was just using you for information on your father, and suddenly you had nothing to do with them and so I tried to move on. I realised that even if I did win, if I did give up KID, that I could never go back to you. Not as a fairness to you. So I did. I slept with other women. Men. Anyone who wasn’t you. I dated, stood up, and even dallianced with a fair number that I can even say were a good time but-”

His voice cracked under the pressure. 

She sat frozen in place.

“Do you know what it's like? That even when I was laying there next to a woman who seemed perfect, to close my eyes and see you instead? When her perfume reminded me of a party you went to when you were fifteen? Ten? And then, just when I would think, 'This time I'll move on'-- there you were in the paper or the news. Not necessarily your name, but your face behind a Matisse you recovered, or an award your department won-- always in the two sections of the news I was sure to see. And suddenly I'd be in a hotel room only a few hundred miles away, and I could imagine you laying against me, or showering, or knocking down my hotel door and I'd-”

She licked her lips, closing her eyes, “I have some idea.”

His voice grew quiet, “Maybe you do.”

“I...” she forced herself to find her voice, “I saw you once. At Hakuba's. You had been injured, and the news thought you might have been dead. I had landed almost a week later, and wouldn't believe him, so he let me in. I should have stayed.”

Her eyes flickered over his chest, looking for the bullet wounds that had incapacitated him for those days as she raised a hand to one of them. Kaito shivered.

“Probably not. That was a hard time and I wasn't the best person that year.”

“We'd been apart over five years Kaito,” she said firmly. “Five years, and at that moment it felt like only minutes and I would've thrown myself over you and stayed if Hakuba hadn't all but dragged me away.”

“Even though I was KID?”

She didn't look up.

“The thing is Aoko, it wasn't just... me as Kaito that fell in love with you. Maybe if it had just been that I would've managed to just pushed it away like a fairy-tale romance that I'd never get over but could live without having, but damn. I would open the pages of the news and see you. Did you know in Japan there were multiple precincts that wanted to offer you the moon to catch me? One of the best white collar officers in the world. You weren't anyone's agent, you weren't the FBI or CIA or Interpol-- you were more like a character from a detective novel, and I knew beyond anything anyone said or claimed that if there was one person in this world capable of catching KID it was you.”

A sharp breath.

“I didn't though.”

His hand brushed her cheek, and he tilted up her chin to look back at her, “Aoko you and I both know you had me from the minute you stepped into that bathroom. Thank you for it, but I'm not an idiot.”

“Maybe it's all just lust,” she said turning her head. “It's possible Kaito. You make me sound like some ideal you've built up in your head that-”

“That bathroom was lust. The thought of taking you over a rooftop in Manhattan, in our uniforms with your Chief waiting two building over? That's lust. But the want and need to give it all up just so I could live next door to you again, just for you to toss fish at me and I can burn cookies for you? The idea that if I ever live to have children I don't want them unless you're their mother? You don't have to agree, you don't have to love me back. Damnit! You don't even have to want it! You can kick me out naked on your stoop and I swear to god I'll disappear and never show up in your life again, but don't you dare try to tell me I don't love you. Because that’s what love is suppose to be right? Letting someone go? Only I tried that and frankly I’m done. So if you’ll have me-”

She sat there staring at him, with his blue eyes so conflicted and hurt and-

“Okay.”

It caught him off guard, “Okay?”

“Okay,” she nodded and reached up threading her fingers through his hair, “You love me.” The words made her feel giddy. Shocked.

“Ao-”

 

“Just kiss me you damn fool.”

 

* * *

 

_New York._  

_The gems in the article winked back at him through his ipad, nearly laughing in the way they sparkled and gleamed. They were far from unassuming, they were the type of stones he would have stolen years ago had anyone but the governments in the middle east been aware of their existence._

_The names, the stories, the original owners..._

_Kaito wanted to throw the tablet across the room and be done with it._  

_There was a chance that the exhibition would move, it was what he'd done in the past, but in this case unlikely. It was too obvious, so much so that even without his presence the men after Pandora would likely strike it without him._

_They had in the past after all._

_His fingers slipped to the next article, an image of the young Japanese woman shaking hands with the Mayor over a collection of paintings. She was practical, with her hair tied up messily behind her, and her suit no nonsense, but-_

_She'd be in charge regardless if he was there or not, and those men had long memories._

_He had no doubt she could protect herself these days. Her name, reoccuring in the times every few months told him as much, and if anything it was becoming too dangerous to ignore. Anyone else and KID would have taken up the challenge years ago, after all what wasn't to draw him in? New York City, young rising star of the white collar division, highest return rate on record, beautiful, and Ginzo Nakamori's daughter at that?_  

_The Japanese media was constantly clamouring for her to come home to catch him, and Kaito knew there was more than offer made her way._  

_Still, he had other reasons not to go. Reasons that had to do with promises made before graves a decade before._  

_God she was beautiful._  

_He laid down on the still untouched bed and stared at the white ceiling of another sparse hotel room. He should call her. Drop a note. Send Hakuba to forewarn her._  

_It wasn't fair, after more than a decade, to simply crash into New York City and set her life a flutter._  

_He knew she wasn't married or had children. He knew she lived on the upper west side. He knew that she was next in line to be head of her division once her chief retired (which would be at least another five years, probably longer). He knew she had duel citizenship, and barely utilized her Japanese one._  

_It probably constituted stalking, although in this case it did account as research._  

_Hakuba told him a fair amount that he wasn't able to glean himself. Probably thought it was better than watch Kaito wear himself into a distraction over it._  

_Definitely not healthy._  

_He shut his eyes._  

_Of course there had been times, moments, that he could almost put it away. Times where a new identity nearly fit and he could forget about the eighteen years he spent as Kaito Kuroba, boy magician, and instead on Kaitou KID, adult thief._

_There had been beautiful women, handsome men, lifestyles of the rich and famous with their parties and intrigues and all the strings attached._

_And then there were the empty hotel rooms, and the late nights, and the memory of a young woman crying on his shoulder as they said goodbye._

_The constant wonder what her kiss would have tasted like._

_It was Pandora._  

_He knew, somehow the sixth sense told him that the damn gems on display in less than a month's time would glow as red as blood once the comet sped overhead. Or at least one of them._  

_Taking a deep breath he forced himself off the bed and back to the ipad._  

_Time to book a one way ticket._  

_New York._  

_Maybe he could even learn to forgive himself._

_Someday._

 

* * *

 

 

The knock on the door had her up in a flash.

“Fuck!”

 Aoko nearly tumbled off the bed, eliciting a murmur from the man sleeping next to her.

Three more, firm steady knocks. She knew those knocks and knew what they meant. Kaito proved entirely unhelpful as he simply rolled over, basking in the sunlight and apparently dead to the world even when greeted with a policeman's knocks at the crack of dawn. 

“Coming!” she yelled trying to find a shirt, and ending up with Kaito's instead. She reached the door as another series of knocks threatened to break it down, “ _What!?”_

“Where is my gem?” The Chief stared down at her with a glare that might have been disarming if she hadn't spent her life as Ginzo Nakamori's daughter. She had spent most mornings face down the expression, and she was sore, tired, in her own apartment, and still on her own ordained vacation. He could go to hell. 

“How the fuck am I supposed to know? Why didn't you call?” She opened the door wider to allow the man in before she flopped down onto her couch. Her entire body ached, and she just hoped the man would be gone so she could crawl back into bed with Kaito and sleep another week. 

“Please Nakamori, do you take me for one of the idiots I hire? I have been. You didn't return my calls, and your phone's been dead for two days.” Aoko felt herself acknowledge she wasn't even certain she knew where it was. Maybe Kaito had tossed it into the pound during their walk in Central Park. She wouldn't put it past him.

More likely it had rolled under her bed....

Probably next to the heist.

The Chief was still talking, “I half wondered if you'd been kidnapped.”

She leaned back, letting out a laugh that wracked her chest and nearly gave her the hiccups. She could see her boss's eyebrows fly up, but for once in her life she couldn't even care. She hadn't wanted on the damn case in the first place, and this is what he got.

“Nakamori?”

“ _That_ is the most ridiculous thing I think I've ever heard you say.”

She tried to stifle another bout of laughter.

Kidnapped indeed.

The Chief looked like he might start setting things alight from her slightly obscured sight, and she wondered if perhaps she had pushed it. Fighting to catch her breath, she waved a hand at him, “Fine. Fine. What's so important that you're interrupting my impromptu vacation?”

The Chief looked murderous, “You told me KID would keep that gem no more two or three days. It's been the better part of a week and still no gem. No note. Nothing. Care to explain?”

She couldn't help it, she tried, but lost as she managed through a laugh, “Maybe he was kidnapped.”

“Nakamori this is no laughing matter!”

_Maybe he's been with me._

She wondered if the gem was stashed in the pocket of his suit coat or trousers laying at the foot of her bed. Not his shirt pocket at least, given she was wearing it.

“How am I supposed to know,” she said rolling her shoulders and pulling the blue silk close to her skin. “Maybe he's been busy.”

Silence, only to be broken a moment later by a question from the other side of the room.

“Coffee?”

Kaito startled them both, the Chief nearly tripping over her coffee table, and the sound of his voice sending a shiver along her spine. Neither of them had heard him enter, unsurprisingly. Of course the man looked immaculate, his bed tossed hair just so, trousers only slightly wrinkled and slung about his waist, shirtless, and her tin of coffee held up in his hands.

He could have been a model posing for a shoot.

Blue eyes laughing at them both, matching the shirt she had wrapped around her shoulders.

The chief looked back from the man and to her, which she just ignored. It was his fault if he wanted to barge into her place at no sane hour on her day off.

“Go ahead and make him a cup to go,” she called after Kaito. “The Chief is just leaving!” In a quieter voice, followed by a stern look she added to her boss, “Be happy Kaito's nicer than I am. I should have him kick you out.”

“Aoko's heart is made of stone,” drifted Kaito's voice from where he was pouring in the water into the pot. He pulled out a couple cups from her cabinet with the ease of someone who had lived there for years rather than days. “So you're her boss?”

The Chief still looked somewhat murderous, although Aoko supposed the suspicion in his gaze should worry her.

“Yes. Who exactly are you?”

“Old friend.”

The words lapsed over themselves and she felt a hint of a color spring to her cheeks as several other words ran through her head to replace them. _Friend, enemies, coworkers, family, lovers…_

The Chief murmured something to himself under his breath, his eyes still locked on Kaito. From her vantage point, she could see the myriad of pictures and profiling for KID. The drawings and prospective looks of him that had been analyzed and reanalyzed. The one's she'd spent hours pouring over with her boss that she now knew were tumbling through his head.

God, even his name, common enough in Japan but in New York....

The coffee brewed and she tried to drag her eyes away from Kaito's back.

“Black?”

The Chief grunted, turning his gaze on Aoko instead, who just curled back up in the shirt as Kaito passed her coffee… perfect amounts of sugar and cream.

Across from them the Chief looked skyward. “I want my fucking gem,” he said out-loud to the room, as though to no one in particular. “So while I'm happy you happen to be enjoying your little vacation, please try to see if you can't make _something_ appear in the next twenty four hours. Understand me Nakamori?”

Kaito's hand tightened on her shoulder, and she felt him tense like a cat ready to pounce.

She slipped a hand over his in an attempt to calm him.

“Yes sir,” she managed meeting his eyes. “I'll see what I can do.”

“Good. Surely you've found ways to get messages to KID before,” his eyes were trained on Kaito by now, with no chance of moving. “Use a bloody bat signal on the side of city hall if you have to, just see to it there isn't a third world war over the damn things by Sunday. Understand?”

“She'll do her best sir,” said Kaito matching his glare. Aoko glanced up and noticed his eyes were nearly violet, but there was a hint of a smirk around his lips. “I'm sure we can come up with a way. I'm a magician after all.”

“Of all the fucking...” the Chief cursed under his breath grabbing for the coffee and making for the door.

“Nice to meet you too,” added Kaito with a grin. “I might be staying awhile and suspect we’ll be seeing quite a bit more of each other from now on. Hope you enjoy the coffee!”

Aoko was fighting back a laugh, and Kaito had pulled her legs onto his lap rather indecorously.

“Nakamori!” The Chief yelled back from the doorframe.

“Yes sir?”

“When I said fuck him… Goddammit! Just tell your boyfriend to be less fucking obvious!”

She felt Kaito's arms tighten around her and she had to smile, “Sir, you were the one who insisted on breaking down my door at six in the morning. I'm not quite awake yet so you'll have to forgive me if I don't know what you're implying.”

She felt Kaito laugh against her ear, rather than heard it, and felt his fingers run reassuringly over her side.

“God save me.”

The door slammed shut with an added, “Fucking thieves.”

Aoko looked up, smiling besides herself at the rather incredulous look on Kaito’s face.

She pressed a firm kiss to his lips.

“Welcome home.” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aoko’s Chief is not an idiot, but there’s also absolutely no proof beyond circumstantial that Kaito is KID and therefore will let it lie. Plus he’s a good guy, and mostly just doesn’t want people stealing in his city. That said-- he’s never going to let Aoko live it down.
> 
> Lincoln Center is in the round, and therefore no box seats. I nearly just ignored that fact or picked a different theatre, but The King and I was too perfect a device to pass up. Probably for the best since things might have gotten a bit heated had they had a private box.
> 
> This was the small “Aoko and Kaito haven’t seen each other and Aoko moved somewhere else” fic that turned into a monster. Obviously. I was thinking maybe the heist and Kaito showing up at her apartment and all of 4,000 words. Six months later it turned into this….
> 
> Thank you so much for everyone who kept up!

**Author's Note:**

> This was a fic that was suppose be a nice little smutty romance fic that I started over six months ago, that turned into a thirty thousand page novella helpfully cheered on by The Catch. 
> 
> Fic is complete and Part II will be up by Kaito's birthday thanks to my lovely beta Eialyne.


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